Explain concept of 'recursion' to grandma? Koch's Snowflake is _/\_ defined by "forward, left 60, forward, right 120, forward, left 60, forward. 1. (2) You must develop a mental technical-to-non-technical translation device. Cracking the Coding Interview states that "All recursive algorithms can [also] be implemented iteratively" in its section on approaching technical interview problems using recursion.. We know that the method we have made is recursive (and therefore an example of recursion) because in our method was called factorial and in it we call a method called factorial. Story Identification: Nanomachines Building Cities. Don't try it with mathematics or whatever the other people here are suggesting. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. Common Table Expressions are categorized as: Recursive CTE's and Non-Recursive CTE's. Recursive CTE's are common table expressions that reference themselves. In Ruby we can then test it by asking for the factorial of 5 (which we know is 120). It associates various information with domain names assigned to each of the associated entities. Recursion is a process in which a function calls itself, either directly or indirectly. Recursive Definitions Sometimes it is possible to define an object (function, sequence, algorithm, structure) in terms of itself. Focus on the initiatives and pain points that your audience cares most about, and your interactions will have a much greater impact with executives and other non-technical employees at your organization. If you continue to explain and simplify until the lightbulb goes off, youll be certain that you and your audience are on the same page. When it comes tohiring or promoting a software engineer, communication skills can be used as the tie-breaker between two equally talented people. Example of a real world recursion: Software Engineering Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for professionals, academics, and students working within the systems development life cycle. Sometimes this means simplifying the concept, i.e. Recursion is a powerful technique that helps us bridge the gap between complex problems being solved with elegant code. Half of the students didn't understand what's this thing and why do we need it. "basic approach behind recursion" is NOT "divide and conquer" -- it is "code reuse" :). we would really appreciate it if you could let people know about the I highly doubt that an 8 year old is going to grasp the concept of a kth element or exponents. This is great. Later you may suggest including some little discrepancies, like using 59 degrees instead of 60 Generally, Logo is awesome language to teach recursion. 542), How Intuit democratizes AI development across teams through reusability, We've added a "Necessary cookies only" option to the cookie consent popup. I also ask questions on behalf of members looking for advice from the community. If you learn best through videos, consider buying my course. It may be that the above situations do not apply. So if my number is 5 it would be multiplying 5 by the factorial of 4. Our mission: to help people learn to code for free. Before you give your presentation, go through each point you intend to make and ask yourself, What does this give the listener? A topic is more digestible when the audience understands how it is relevant to their lives. However, if you really feel you need to explain something you could use the medical receptionist analogue. if you want to explain to an 8 year old recursion, use the linear series Okay whatever, so the last person just says the number on the card. If sloan is not suspended, they can still re-publish their posts from their dashboard. When daddy drives the car, it's "normal call". sacrificing some of the nuances of it. The function has to process or perform any operation at the time of calling and it does nothing at returning time. What the recipient of these blueprints cares about is the context (that the remodel design will allow more people to fit in the same office space) and the impact (the company saves money by not having to lease a second building). Process arbitrarily large lists without explicit recursion or abstract list functions? The second step is figuring out ways to explain often quite complex concepts in lay terms. Someone in a movie theater asks you what row you're sitting in. Be realistic about how much you can explain to a non-technical audience with a single presentation or interaction. What they will comprehend is a simple statement explaining that users will be able to request refunds more easily, alleviating stress on the accounting department. Try it yourself. The function might have more than one base case, but it must have at least one. Youll find your conversations with coworkers in other departments flow easier as ideas are shared simply and fluidly. The second is how to measure . An executive doesnt necessarily need to every part of an architecture diagram; they want a basic understanding of the structure. Sketching something out is often very useful. Since five is not less than or equal to zero, we go to the else statement. How can I recognize one? Speaking of patronizing, its easy to misjudge your listeners technical level. Recursion means "solving a problem using the solution of smaller subproblems (smaller version of the same problem)" or "defining a problem in terms of itself". Any function which calls itself is called recursive function, and such function calls are called recursive calls. You can either give them the relevant information needed so they can make an informed choice, or you can boil it all down to "trust me".. The senior management team that approves funding or budgeting likewise may not be technical. That is how I really really understood recursion when I first learned it couple decades ago and it blew my mind :). Your classmate says fine, but then realizes there must be like 49 cards in this deck, which sounds like a lot, I mean come on? Use a mathematical monster like the Julia or Mandebrot set in fractal form. The function involved is called a recursive function. 2^4 = 2^3*2 Recursion(adjective: recursive) occurs when a thing is defined in terms of itself or of its type. This might be pretty complex internally. If you read this far, tweet to the author to show them you care. It is almost always obvious when the lightbulb goes off in your listener. Recursion is a way of doing an operation over a set of values, where each value is related to the previous one, without iterating or using loops. How much IT exposure have they had? How much of what you were told went right over your head? You simply have to add 1 from the person's . Tail recursion is a form of linear recursion. See recursion. Along with asking questions of your listener to gage the right entrance point for the conversation, another tool you can leverage is your power of observation. Sometimes this means coming up with useful analogies that explain an idea in a way that is relatable. This may be exploited to perform DNS cache snooping attac How much of what you were told went right over your head? where we explain Computer Science and Web Development terms in And you dont know which one has the key! Tear them apart and you'll find that the smaller parts will turn out to look like the big whole you once had, just smaller. What does a search warrant actually look like? Technical people can somehow make a connection in their heads with other technical stuff they know to be able to comprehend something new. As such, tail recursive functions can often be easily implemented in an iterative manner; by taking out the recursive call and replacing it with a loop, the same effect can . These are some of the most common tools used for incremental problem solving in any . But there is no pile in the recursive approach. This is a case where using recursion is definitely an advantage. Donations to freeCodeCamp go toward our education initiatives, and help pay for servers, services, and staff. He called this 'regression towards mediocrity'. Free and easy to use APIs for your next project, learning a new technology, or building a new feature. Write down the steps to cut the fish so it fits in the pan. One way to ensure that you start out at the right level of explanation is by asking the listener what they do and dont already know. Concerning the "why you would use it": Does this matter to non-programmers? The method has called itself. Why doesn't Java have optimization for tail-recursion at all? By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Boost your confidence in PM interviews by attending peer to peer mock interview practices, group practices, and QA sessions with expert PMs. can you explain it simply and describe it with an analogy. Improve this answer. In this tutorial, you will learn to create a recursive function (a function that calls itself). If you're looking to hire technical talent for your company, pleasecontact us. void recursion() { recursion(); /* function calls itself */ } int main() { recursion(); } n=0 is the base case, and we simply return 1 if it's true. Crucially, recursive functions can propagate information through multiple calls by passing variables around. This process once again gets on and on until the person before grandma knows how many people are before him and replies the same to you. Point is, make sure you're extremely concrete. Avoid getting too deep into a technical hole where no one else is tracking by focusing less on the how and more on the why. Recursion, though, is a fairly elusive concept, often used in slightly different ways.1 Before I delve into some of the complexi-ties, let's consider some further examples to give the general idea. Python developer with some experience in Image Processing. Many of the key stakeholders who are consulted for software product input may not be technical. He needs to understand the algorithm before he can understand the code that will accomplish it. Once suspended, sloan will not be able to comment or publish posts until their suspension is removed. The choice of whether to use recursion to solve a problem depends in large part on the nature of the problem. This continues until i equals zero. freeCodeCamp's open source curriculum has helped more than 40,000 people get jobs as developers. If a listener cant take away something helpful from a piece of information, then its a sign to zoom out and focus on the bigger picture. In plain English, what is recursion? I believe it's better for everyone if a software developer uses proper . Stories are effective at planting ideas in the minds of your audienceespecially stories told from personal experience. This explain pretty much the concept of recursion. Python Recursion. As a result, you have to maintain the stack and track the values of the variables specified in it. Those same software engineers often have all of the raw material to be great communicators. Or does your listener already understand? This course breaks down what recursion is, why you would and wouldn't want to use it, and shows a variety of examples for how it can be used. This can improve efficiency, as well as make people feel more integrated into the overall business direction. Think of each slide in the context of how it will guide your audience along the journey from point A to point B.. Excellent for beginners or if you just need software engineer, motorcyclist, bass guitar player, C++ fanatic, video game maker, working on my own scripting language, experienced developer * passionate about teaching, University of Pennsylvania - MSE in Computer and Electrical Engineering. Stout Systems is the software consulting and staffing company Fueled by the Most Powerful Technology Available: Human Intelligence. Your three-year-old son pops in from around the corner and lets you know he hid the only key in a box. k8 = k7 +1. Otherwise, youll lose their attention and trust faster than you can build it. Awareness of your own industrys jargon is a great place to begin improving this area of your communication. Any attempt to draw attention to their non-technical nature might be wrong (they might be very technically capable in other fields - just not websites) and, in any case . Thanks for keeping DEV Community safe. Recursion is a way of doing an operation over a set of values, where each value is related to the previous one, without iterating or using loops. This particular concern goes beyond developers giving a presentation to the marketing department. The second way uses recursion. Solving a Python problem iteratively might include using a for or while loop. A physical world example would be to place two parallel mirrors facing each other. They can still re-publish the post if they are not suspended. For more information, please see our Imagine you go to open a room, but the room is locked. Possible Duplicate: Here is the countdown function again, with a base case: It may not be obvious exactly what is happening in this function. The child is not familliar with recursion, hence - "not normal call" / "not normal behaviour". Then you tell the person who asked you. The factorial of a number is just the number multiplied by a progressively smaller figure until we get to 1. IMHO an average 8 year old kid's mind is not yet developed enough to comprehend recursion in its entirety - that requires a level of abstract thinking (s)he is not capable of yet. For instance, you may want to write a count down function. Are you sure you want to hide this comment? Best example I can think of offhand is if I need to explain object orientation, I'll explain it using a deck of cards. The condition that terminates the further call of the function by defining the termination state is called the base condition. Regardless of the question, I think any child should own a book with paintings of M. C. Escher. The third-to-last person takes the number that the second-to-last person tells them and adds it to the number on the card they kept, and so on back up the line. You get the number that the second person tells you and add it to the one card you kept. Recursion described in really simple terms, this guide assumes no knowledge of computer science topics and by the end of it you should understand recursion. Then, move on to factorial, length of list, sum of list, simple mathematical formulas in this area. To find out, you ask the person in front of you. This process is called recursion. At least it will keep the kids quiet until they get bored (or is that the base case?). Why not ask? The second-to-last person takes that number and adds it to the card they kept, and tells it to the person who asked them. We were founded in 1993 and are based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Drawbacks of nonrepudiation with digital signatures. Sign upto receive our technical articles in your email inbox. Remember, the first method was iterative using loops. Do it properly, and the chances of success are so much higher. Do you need to explain the difference between client-side and server-side programming? When discussing technology, its more helpful to highlight what makes it a worthwhile investment rather than how it works. Why? Don't try it with mathematics or whatever the other people here are suggesting. This phenomenon is called the picture superiority effect. If not, you might consider providing a reference guide for any technical acronyms and terms youll be using during your presentation or incorporating those definitions into your slides. Recursion is the process of defining a problem (or the solution to a problem) in terms of (a simpler version of) itself. And thanks to recursion, you can finally find the key and get your shirt! If you dont have your own relatable or relevant story, use anecdotes taken from recent events or industry publications that fit your needs. Ahhh infinite recursion!! If youre looking for a quick, effective way to visualize and share your content with your organization, theres Lucidchart. One extra approach that might work is to work out, with him, the algorithm that solves a tower of Hanoi, a rubics cube, or even a simple puzzle (do a simple puzzle with the picture facing the floor, and you'll quickly end up working like a computer, trying combinations one at a time). Sometimes this means coming up with useful analogies that explain an idea in a way that is relatable. Even if youve explained the technology to people hundreds of times and know the subject matter inside and out, the person youre currently talking to might be hearing about it for the first time. Those same software engineers often have all of the raw material to be great communicators. Explain Your Terms. So you hatch a plan You keep the top card, and you hand the rest to your classmate and ask them to add up rest of the cards. That sounds like a lot of work. Oh no they wont, they will just remember how much more they will hate eating broccoli! It means that a function calls itself. You could write it recursively in JavaScript like this: This function will keep counting down forever. sacrificing some of the nuances of it. This is similar to a stack of books. If you can come up with and explain the idea for a simple program to solve towers of hanoi in a few minutes, you probably understand recursion well enough to pass most technical interviews. You can use it to display mathematical concepts. A non-tech guy's way of learning data science Hello everyone. k4 = k3 +1 2^5 = 2^4*2 2^2 = 2^1*2 = 2*2 =4 and it is defined like this: 5! Prefer: and again, and again, and again Pan it out so he's getting the impression he's playing a game. (3) You must realize that communication is always two-way. Here is what you can do to flag sloan: sloan consistently posts content that violates DEV Community's If that somebody isnt you, then someone else with equal technical skill may be perceived as more valuable. Take time to allow them to wrap their head around your subject, avoiding the urge to cram every detail on a slide and just reading it aloud., If youre going to use PowerPoint to convey your information, remember that every slide should enhance the presentation and not detract from it. Webdev. I know it's a shitty explanation but it's all I could really come up with off the top of my head. Copyright 1995-2023 - STOUT SYSTEMS DEVELOPMENT INC. - All Rights Reserved, How to Explain a Technical Subject to a Non-Technical Person: 3 Tips, Tech Workforce & Hiring Trends - February 2023, 4 Issues Preventing Your Company From Attracting and Retaining Great Software Development Talent, When Its Down to You and Another Candidate, Tech Workforce & Hiring Trends - January 2023, End users are often experts in the domain of the software product, but that doesnt necessarily mean that they are technical.. Heres one aspect of communication skills that is highly valued and easy to improve: your ability to explain a technical subject to a non-technical person. Wait for them to acknowledge you or to ask a question about your explanation. The communication skills necessary to present knowledge-specific information to non-techies is growing in necessity. This particular concern goes beyond developers giving a presentation to the. To break the ice, jokingly acknowledge the fact that youre a computer nerd or tech geek and apologize in advance if you get too technical. K = k + 1 Take some time to make sure your audience understands the context of the situation.. 8-year olds can be smart, but their brain is not really equipped at that age to grasp this level of abstraction. By reading the room, you can adjust your content accordingly. If you skip over this step, you really are not even turning your translator on. Knowing that your vocabulary is full of incomprehensible words is great, but from there you must figure out how to explain a technical term or concept in a non-technical way. In conclusion, using any one of these tips will help keep in mind the average non-technical listener. We provide expert level software, Web and embedded systems development consulting and staffing services along with direct-hire technical recruiting and placements. Cookie Notice factorial(5) is written as 5! This prevents infinite loops. Recursion can be tough to understand especially for new programmers. Acknowledge the things theyre good at and let them know you have respect for what they do. Recursive data structures and recursive functions go together like bread and butter. Python. If not, your function will enter an infinite . First, then, a not-too-serious dictionary deinition: Recursion (r-kr'-zhn) noun. . The iterative approach with loops can sometimes be faster. This demonstrates what recursion is, but doesn't explain why or how you would use it. You are too lazy to count, so you ask the person in front of you. @MainMa, we had recursion on the first day of our computer sci degree - that way students that were not up to computer sci could change degrees quickly (pity more of the "hopeless" ones did not make the change). The recursive case is when the function calls itself. The recursive function's structure can often be modeled after the definition of the recursive data structure it takes as an input. Give him (her?) You may opt-out by. We could have each person give the card back when they say the result (deck.push(mycard)), but in code it's cleaner to just pass a slice of the rest of the deck: To begin, if you want to understand recursion, you must understand what is recursion. Using a recursive algorithm, certain problems can be solved quite easily. Another way to describe recursion is linguistic recursion. A medical practice has it's own patient database and appointment scheduling system used by it's admin and medical staff. Can coding just be a job or does it have to effect my whole lifestyle? Or does your listener already understand? Somebody on the team needs to be able to communicate with these stakeholders. Recursion is used in a variety of disciplines ranging from linguisticsto logic. Immediate members of the team such as Project Managers, Business Analysts and Technical Writers may be highly skilled in their specific jobsbut also not technical. Put a period on a paragraphand then take a breath. In the same manner as you would any other informationin a clear and compelling way. Or maybe youre hoping to convince finance that your tech team deserves new equipment? Framing a Binary Search Problem for your Non-Technical Friends. It cuts through the technical level and gives these people the information they truly want. Like professionals in any industry, software engineers become so familiar with the language of their work that they forget what is and isnt jargon. Did they refer to parts of the body by their Latin names or their common names? (2) You must develop a mental technical-to-non-technical translation device. This Quora question is a good start. Something you have to look out for when writing a recursive function is an infinite loop. As you put together your presentation, always keep your objective or purpose in mind.

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