[Edu-sig] visualizing namespaces

[kirby urner]

Although I emphasize the idea of namespaces in a "tree structure" in
my caption to this picture (below), we should admit that namespaces
may import one another in a cyclic networky way.  It's really just
what each namespace needs to do its own work, that it should import.

You can get into cyclic trouble this way (I've been there).

The tree structure really comes in useful with the filesystem and the
whole idea of paths.  I'm always surprise when I tour US public
schools, how few posters or how little wall art I see with CS
metaphors or CS teachings -- that's got to change with STEM I'm
thinking.

I see STEM as somewhat on a collision course with the "common core
standards" by the way (apologies to international readership for
parochial jargon) as the math standards, for example, are being
dreamed up by cube farmers with not much overview.  They're distilling
from textbooks of the recent two generations, not thinking ahead to
STEM integration.

This is because common core standards was supposed to be a way to
capitalize on existing textbook inventory (existing word problems,
exercises), to help with recycling.  Textbook publishers aren't
planning any major "integration" across S, T, E and M -- that's not in
their game plan.

That's why the STEM people tend to want to drop over-reliance on wood
pulp textbooks to begin with.  You can't correct them (not the
physical copies) except with a new edition.  If you need hardcopy,
print on demand is the way to go, and charge only those that opt for
it.  Requiring a hard copy for every student is more the hallmark of
the dino publishers and their "common core" -- nothing to do with
STEM.

Speaking of tree structures and filesystems:  important to emphasize
sys.path fairly early in the Python training I think, as a way of
reinforcing ideas about the file tree, and as a way of giving the
coder / programmer a feeling of power and control, as sys.path may be
added to dynamically, by your program.

Kirby


On Sun, May 27, 2012 at 10:26 AM, kirby urner <kirby.urner at gmail.com> wrote:

<< SNIP >>

> http://www.flickr.com/photos/17157315@N00/7276024654/in/photostream
>