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Fake news shapes memories
by Spektrum der Wissenschaft
Good linguistic talent, good programmer
23.3.2020
Translation: machine translated
If you can do maths, it's easier to learn programming languages. That's the conventional wisdom. But psychologists say that another talent is much more advantageous.
Who has what it takes to be a programmer? People who have a good understanding of maths, one would probably think. But not only, as a study by neurologists at the University of Washington suggests. According to the study, a talent for languages is the decisive factor.
Prat and her team also recorded the electrical activity patterns in the test subjects' brains in advance - using electroencephalography (EEG). The researcher claims to have already demonstrated in previous studies that the EEG at rest can be used to deduce how well a person can learn foreign languages. "Ultimately, this data from the brain in a resting state can be used as a culturally uninfluenced benchmark to measure how someone learns," says Prat.
Do you absolutely need mathematical knowledge to study computer science?
For Prat, the result is remarkable, among other things, because students in computer science and similar subjects often have to demonstrate extensive mathematical knowledge and skills. There is also a prevailing opinion in society that a good programmer must necessarily be a good mathematician. "However, our data does not confirm these ideas," says Prat.
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