What is Algorithmically Speaking?

Algorithmically Speaking - #0: Let me show you some of the most beautiful algorithmic problems in the history of Computer Science

Hello there!

This is the first post from Algorithmically Speaking, where I will be showing you what to expect from this blog and, hopefully, you will decide to join me on this journey of discovery.

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Who am I?

My name is Alberto, and I’m a Computer Scientist who graduated from the University of Havana, Cuba. Since then, I have been involved in several projects developing software. This allowed me to polish some of my skills in facing real-life problems and developing solutions under very (and not so) tight resource constraints.

I’ve done some back-end development, some data science involving geospatial data, and (probably what I’m most proud of) some teaching. Teaching allowed me to give back all my knowledge in specific areas to people interested in those areas. And I’m proud of the results.

This substack will be all about teaching and learning. This leads to the question of what will we be learning (and teaching) about.

Algorithms (a.k.a My Passion)

Algorithms are beautiful. They just are!

I tremendously enjoyed my Data Structures and Algorithm Design courses at the University. I was fortunate enough to participate in two ICPC World Finals. And I still carry a lot of that knowledge with me.

Algorithmic thinking can help you improve at the best (and sometimes underrated) skill for someone dedicated to Computer Science, Software Engineering, and probably any other Scientific area: Problem-Solving.

I will aim to teach you how to solve problems through algorithmic methods. And, for that, I plan to show you the most beautiful problems (and solutions) in the history of Computer Science.

How will this work?

Every Friday, I will share a new post describing a classic Computer Science problem, and I will guide you through solving it. I plan to focus on the thinking process and some of the most interesting observations that should be made in every solution.

Hopefully, I will share some code examples as well. Maybe with a link to GitHub. We’ll figure it out together.

At the end of every post, I will leave you with an algorithmic problem to think about, so you can keep polishing your problem-solving skills. We can discuss the solutions to those problems as a community or you can send me your answers by replying to this email.

Participate

As I said before, this substack will be all about teaching and learning. I want to teach you from my experience and I want to learn from yours. Share all your thoughts and different approaches to the problems I will discuss. Share everything that comes to your mind.

I think that is the best way to grow as a community. Let’s benefit from the exchange of knowledge!

Last Words

That’s it for now! Hopefully, I’ve convinced you to stick around and join me on this journey through the most beautiful algorithmic problems in the history of Computer Science. Thanks for reading!

See you next week!

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