Learn math, it's at the core of today's tech

Math is the foundation of computer science and India should focus much more on rigorous math training, right from the high-school level, says Prof Yadati Narahari, who teaches computer science (CS) and automation at IISc. Math, he says, has become the bedrock of everything that is currently happening. “If one wants to become a designer of new tools, an architect of new sensational products, create new knowledge, and prove future theorems, then math and conceptual foundations are the key,” he says.

Narahari, chairman of the division of electrical, electronics and CS at the institute in Bengaluru, says theoretical computer science is essentially math, and subjects such as probability, statistics, linear algebra, graph theory, combinatorics and optimisation are at the heart of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), data science and CS in general. At IISc, CS students are required to take mandatory math courses as part of their research preparation. “This is very crucial to maintaining the rigour and quality of research,” says Narahari.

Last year, IISc introduced an MTech programme in AI. It received 1,600-plus applications for just 40 seats — a measure of the way the wind is blowing. “A large number of students are interested in a Master’s in computer science,” says Narahari. However, in his observation, an average engineering graduate who comes for an interview to IISc is often found to be wanting in analytical and mathematical foundations. “This is happening at the BE/BTech level, where foundations, scientific conceptual details and problem-solving aren’t being given the kind of importance they require,” he says. And lack of quality faculty is a major reason for this mediocrity.

“In a typical CS department of an undergraduate engineering college, the faculty members are those who haven’t got jobs in the IT sector and have hence settled for teaching positions. This is the story of most engineering colleges in India, except a select few like the IITs, NITs,” he says. One solution, he thinks, could lie in making the teaching profession more attractive by offering remuneration comparable to IT industry pay packages.