Why You Should be a Computer Scientist
Back in February, I wrote a short story on why I think one should become a computer scientist. I stumbled upon it not too long ago and thought it was kind of funny! So, I thought I’d share (some modifications have been made for this post).
Why should you learn computer science?
A genie said to the man: “I will grant you three wishes under one condition: wishing for more wishes is forbidden.”
The man, who happened to be a computer scientist sat in silence for a moment before responding: “I wish for my total count of wishes to be counted in an unsigned 32-bit integer.”
Confused, the genie looked at the man. “That’s an odd wish,” he said. “Granted, still. You have two more wishes at your disposal, counted in an unsigned 32-bit integer, as requested.”
“Perfect,” the man said, a sly smirk on his face. He continued: “Now, I wish only this: all of the previously fulfilled wishes need to be deducted from the total amount of wishes that I have left, only upon their individual completion.”
“That’s oddly specific”—the genie furrowed his brow—“granted.” The confusion in his expression palpable.
“Now you have… Oh, god”—the genie looked around in horror—“what’s happening?!” he cried out. The man continued: “2³² - 1,” a confident smirk on his face.
Now, at first glance, the joke might seem a bit bad… maybe it is very bad. But maybe the observation about unsigned integers isn’t the main subject itself.
Maybe the joke is that being a computer scientist is simply not worth it.
I regret my career choices.
Published on 2025-04-10