Designing Philosophers

From the classical conceptualisations and discourses of Aristotle and Plato to the disturbing situatedness of the existentialists, philosophy provides perspectives on aspects of existence, thought and knowledge that illuminate and explain as well as connecting the somewhat specialised and inaccessible theory of software and systems engineering to the wider consciousness. This paper summarises the positions of selected philosophers that have been interpreted by some influential authors in software engineering to strengthen their arguments and in turn influence software methodology. Consideration of these philosophical perspectives can usefully influence the design of research projects and the analysis of results, particularly where the enquiry involves the business, industrial and other situated contexts in which contemporary system design and development is done

Teaching object-oriented programming using BETA

This paper describes the approach to teaching object-oriented programming at Aarhus University. This includes a brief discussion of the conceptual approach to teaching object-oriented programming. The BETA language is used as a basis for the teaching. The paper includes a brief description of BETA. Finally a presentation of the BETA Macintosh environment is given. This environment makes it easy for students to create object-oriented applications

On Some Epistemological Problems of Software Engineering

The paper addresses some misconceptions of Software Engineering, requirements analysis and modelling in particular, due to underlying epistemological flaws., e.g. the believe that the system analyst\u27s task be simlar to that of a natural scientist\u27s. The fundamental issues, constitution of objects and signs, conceptualization and definability, are discussed. It comes out that the paradoxical situation of software engineering is having to formalize what cannot be formalized. This is reflected in the fuzzy notion of \u27model\u27 in general as well as in the epistemological presumptions of \u27object oriented modelling\u27 in particular. The paradigm of \u27objective modelling\u27 has to be replaced by a paradigm of \u27purposive description\u27 shifting the focus of Software Engineering research to non-formal methodologies

Making mathematics phenomenal : Based on an Inaugural Professorial Lecture delivered at the Institute of Education, University of London, on 14 March 2012

Mathematics is often portrayed as an 'abstract' cerebral subject, beyond the reach of many. In response, research with digital technology has led to innovative design in which mathematics can be experienced to some extent like everyday phenomena. I examine how careful design can 'phenomenalise' mathematics - that is to say create mathematical artefacts that can be directly experienced to support not only engagement but also focus on key ideas. I argue that mathematical knowledge gained through interaction with suitably designed tools can prioritise powerful reasons for doing mathematics, imbuing it with a sort of utility and offering learners hooks on which they can gradually develop fluency and connected understanding. Illustrative examples are taken from conventional topics such as number, algebra, geometry and statistics but also from novel situations where mathematical methods are juxtaposed with social values. The suggestion that prioritising utility supports a more natural way of learning mathematics emerges directly from constructionist pedagogy and inferentialist philosophy