Comments on: Greedy Instructional Design http://www.jarche.com/2008/10/greedy-instructional-design/ Life in Perpetual Beta Thu, 09 Feb 2012 01:59:38 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Daniel Lemire http://www.jarche.com/2008/10/greedy-instructional-design/comment-page-1/#comment-186058 Daniel Lemire Tue, 28 Oct 2008 23:04:37 +0000 http://www.jarche.com/?p=1811#comment-186058 What is cool about greedy algorithms is that when they are not optimal, they are usually pretty good. But even if you have never taken computer science before, you use greedy algorithms all the time. For example... you have to give back 0.67$... how do you do it? First, you give two quarters, then ten cents, then 5 cents, then 2 cents. This is actually greedy. You first try to give back the largest unit you can (say a quarter) until you no longer can. The end result is provably optimal: you will give the smaller number of pieces. Just ask any first year computer science student and he will write the proof for you. If you assume that most problems in life a pretty complicated... too complicated to be easily modelled mathematically... then computer science teaches us to go with a greedy algorithm. It is the natural thing to do, but I believe that several generations of philosophers and mathematicians have tried to convinced us that planning was better. Maybe it is more comforting. Maybe it allows you to write more books... but will the end result be better? I doubt it. What is cool about greedy algorithms is that when they are not optimal, they are usually pretty good.

But even if you have never taken computer science before, you use greedy algorithms all the time. For example… you have to give back 0.67$… how do you do it? First, you give two quarters, then ten cents, then 5 cents, then 2 cents. This is actually greedy. You first try to give back the largest unit you can (say a quarter) until you no longer can. The end result is provably optimal: you will give the smaller number of pieces. Just ask any first year computer science student and he will write the proof for you.

If you assume that most problems in life a pretty complicated… too complicated to be easily modelled mathematically… then computer science teaches us to go with a greedy algorithm.

It is the natural thing to do, but I believe that several generations of philosophers and mathematicians have tried to convinced us that planning was better. Maybe it is more comforting. Maybe it allows you to write more books… but will the end result be better? I doubt it.

]]> By: Learning Pulse | Xyleme Learning Blog http://www.jarche.com/2008/10/greedy-instructional-design/comment-page-1/#comment-185972 Learning Pulse | Xyleme Learning Blog Wed, 15 Oct 2008 09:28:59 +0000 http://www.jarche.com/?p=1811#comment-185972 [...] Jarche: Instructional design with a greedy algorithm may allow more [...] [...] Jarche: Instructional design with a greedy algorithm may allow more [...]

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