The Programmers Brain

Notes from The Programmer's brain by Felienne Hermans

1. Decoding your confusion while coding

Code is a mental decoding process.
Confussion involves cognitive processes.
Confussion processes:
- Lack of knowledge: understand what are you doing.
- Lack of information: understand how this is happening.
- Lack of processing power: be able to execute the code in your brain.
Cognitive processes associated:
- Lack of knowledge: LTM Long term memory.
- Lack of information: STM Short term memory.
- Lack of processing power: Working memory.
The three cognitive processes work together when you're coding.
LTM could be the knowlege and experience using a language intructions.
STM could be the variables used to implement a piece of code.3

"Programs must be writter for people to read and only incidentally for machines to execute" Harold Abelson.
There is often a lot of focus on producing code.
STM is limited (6 slots).
Chunking technique to read code: read a piece of code for 3 minutes and try to remember it. Chunks help to structure your interpretation.
Iconic memory: space to store sensory memory.
Iconic memory can be procressed in the STM.
Iconic exercise: look the code for a short time and the reflecting on what you have seen.
Chunkeable code is about use conventions and patterns to help you to process code faster.
When code contains comments, programmers will take more time to read it. (How do we read algorithms? Martha Crosby)
Beacons are a piece of code contains certain data or approach.
Beacons are a trigger for programmers to confirm or refute hyphotesis about the source. 😲

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