Ibrahim H – Investigation 1B

5 Majors Exploration
I want my mind to have a taste of everything life has to offer. I want to send it on expeditions through every field of human endeavor until it decides on a single discipline or is eaten up by senility, whichever comes first. I haven’t yet fully decided on my program, but I’ll talk about some of the programs that do interest me.

Computer Science
With technology playing an ever-increasing role in daily life, the demand for computer scientists is rising exponentially. Computer Science is an extremely challenging program that uses extensive applications of math and stats. You can also combine a computer science degree with various other disciplines such as Economics, Biology, Physics etc. – this demonstrates the versatility of its applications.

Students in computer science can choose from a range of different focuses including Artificial Intelligence, Computer Systems, Theory of Computation, Human-Computer Interaction, and Game Design just to name a few. I am intrigued by Artifical Intelligence – the studies aimed at understanding and replicating the computational processes underlying intelligent behaviour. Within Artificial Intelligence I want to study Computational Linguistics. The course I am most looking forward to taking is CSC485H1 (Computational Linguistics) – a 4th-year course that teaches you about the processing of language by a computer. This is the field of study that is used in the creation of virtual assistants like Siri or Google Assistant, and seems a very interesting field of study which has ever increasing applications.

Economics
Economics is a social science that encompasses a broad range of human behaviour and has a strong influence on the structure, well-being and development of a society. Majoring in Economics requires the ability to think critically and perform quantitative analyses, write clear and concise technical reports and essays, and gather and analyze data related to social, economic and business problems. Economics also requires extensive use of mathematics and its applications.

Economics branches out into two major areas: microeconomics and macroeconomics. Microeconomics is basically the study of individuals, households, and firms and how these different entities make decisions. Macroeconomics, on the other hand, is the study of the country's economy as whole i.e. GDP, inflation, exchange rates etc.  I incline more towards microeconomics and the psychological aspect of decision making. One of my current Professors is Robert Gazzale; he has conducted extensive research and published various papers on the behavioural aspect of economics. I would love to have him as a professor in future years and perhaps engage in research opportunities with him, through the ECO499 (Honours Essay in Applied Microeconomics) course.

Mathematics
Mathematics essentially serves as a tool for our scientific understanding of the world. Knowledge of mathematics is important for various disciplines including economics and computer science. Students who have majored in mathematics have demonstrated the ability to exercise critical thinking and logical reasoning, apply computational skills, and come up with unique solutions to complex problems. This is perhaps why a degree in mathematics opens gateways to many different professions such as economics, finance, computing, engineering, and the natural sciences.

If I was to study mathematics, I would focus more on the applications of mathematics rather than the theoretical aspects of it. I would preferably take up mathematics courses that also tie into my interest in economics such as APM466 (Mathematical Theory of Finance), which introduces students to the basic mathematical techniques in pricing theory and risk management.

Data Science
Data Science is an interdisciplinary field, combining computer and statistical sciences. There has been a massive increase in the amount of data available from new technologies, including network data, image data, and streaming data. Data scientists find value in this data, using advanced computer technology to analyze this vast amount of information. Data scientists need skills in information management and organization, statistics and machine learning, and excellent communication skills.

To obtain the relevant skills of being a data scientist, I'll need to take advanced level statistical and computer science courses, as well as participating in opportunities to work on problems involving complex data sets, such as DataFest competitions hosted by various universities.

Philosophy
With most of my other interests being in rigorous science courses with a heavy focus on computational skills, philosophy offers a pleasant alternative. Philosophy is an abstract subject that looks at the world from a different perspective to that of natural sciences and social sciences; it takes no belief for granted but rather examines the grounds for every belief. To be successful in philosophy you need the ability to think abstractly and objectively, write clearly and effectively, and present a case convincingly.

Within philosophy, there are various subtopics; I am particularly fascinated by the field of epistemology – the branch of philosophy concerned with the theory of knowledge. One of the greatest debates in epistemology is the Rationalist vs Empiricist debate. I look forward to taking David Barnett's classes, because of his publications on the rationalist/empiricist debate.