

Ask HN: What are current CS subfields in their infancy? - uhno

My wife (a chemist) and I were recently talking about Watson and Crick and other work that had a significant impact on the life sciences. She asked an interesting question which I was unable to satisfactorily answer:<p>What are some examples of computer science subfields which are in their infancy today?<p>Two examples I came up with were quantum computing and nanoscale computing+robotics. These are fields which (to my knowledge) are still in their infancy today but which I think will have a significant impact within the somewhat near future. It&#x27;s also perhaps interesting that both of those subfields are interdisciplinary and not pure CS.<p>This is a train of thought along the same lines as Richard Hamming&#x27;s &quot;You and Your Research&quot; talk (http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.cs.virginia.edu&#x2F;~robins&#x2F;YouAndYourResearch.html). While I think Hamming comes across here as elitist and arrogant, he does have an interesting point: if you don&#x27;t know what the important problems or areas are in your field, you can&#x27;t be an effective representative.
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MalcolmDiggs
I'd argue that AI, or more specifically "soft computing" is still nascent. Not
so much in the theory behind it, but in practical/everyday applications having
access to enough computing resources to do anything with it.

