NYC Mayor Bloomberg To Take Online Computer Coding Course

New York City Michael Bloomberg, whose eponymous computer terminals formed a cornerstone of his commercial empire, announced he intends to take a computer coding course this year. The class was spawned by an initiative called Code Year, which promoters are using to encourage more people to understand the rudiments of computer code and actually create very simple computer programs. (For more information, the About Us in codeacademy.com provides a very thin thumbnail outline of the project's goals.)

Pointedly, the Big Apple mayor and media mogul publicized his decision via Twitter. (It may have been posted via the hashtag #codeyear.) The story was picked up by online editions of the BBC.

Some of Code Year's most enthusiastic supporters have suggested that computer code language is analogous to the spread of Latin in Europe and the Mediterranean. While the analogy has its appeal on the surface, a look at the details makes one hesitate to embrace the concept. Of the many code languages in current use, which one would be the world's lingua franca? Another consideration is that code languages are not static, but fluid creations dependent upon logic and a certain sense of architectural understanding for successful creation of apps, databases, and web pages. How many code creators share that amalgam of sensibilities? And anyone who thinks a quick course in "code" can lead to the construction of something useful probably has not worked with code.

The most significant argument against the case for code as a universal, marvelously expressive tool is language itself. Like it or not, English remains the dominant language to talk about, define, and leverage code creation and its activities. Ironically, one of the world's most illogical, imprecise languages serves as the globe's current analogy to Latin's firm rules and powerful brevity. It is the English language, rather than alphanumerically communicated propositions, that continues to provide a most rewarding window into the human mind and soul. To paraphrase Hamlet, there are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamt of in anyone's code.