Why do so few people major in computer science? (2017)
There&#x27;s one other possible, additional reason.<p>I recently asked a 17-year-old high school senior who is heading to college what she&#x27;s planning to study, and she said it would be mathematics, biomedical engineering, or some other kind of engineering. She&#x27;s self-motivated -- says she will be studying multi-variate calculus, PDEs, and abstract algebra on her own this summer. She maxed out her high school math curriculum, which included linear algebra as an elective.<p>Naturally, I asked her about computer science, and she said something like this (paraphrasing):<p><i>&quot;The kids who love computers at my high school seem to be able to spend their entire day focusing on a computer screen, even on weekends. I cannot do that. And those kids are mostly boys whose social behavior is a little bit on the spectrum.&quot;</i><p>While I don&#x27;t fully agree with her perspective, it makes me wonder how many other talented people shun the field for similar reasons.