Shawn Broderick '88 returned to campus last Thursday to persuade computer science students of the importance of pursuing a major in the field within the context of a liberal arts degree. Broderick, the founder and CEO of TrustPlus, an online network that compiles reputations of and for inhabitants of the virtual world, demonstrated to students in "Intro to Computers" how computer science moved from "cute" to "big" to its current state as "part of the fabric of the economy."

Broderick explained how he got involved in the sciences. As a child in the 1970s, he claimed to have been pushed into the sciences by "the zeitgeist of the nerds of the day" and lamented that things are different now.

Nonetheless, he said that whereas in the past the default postgraduation decision was to get a law degree, presently this decision has been switched to obtaining a degree in computer science, regardless of what profession one strives for in the long run.

Moreover, he said, many of those who do study computer science fail to understand the need to use their degrees in ways that do not compete with the jobs offered for a fraction of the price overseas.

"At a liberal arts university such as Brandeis, you learn how to learn," he said, emphasizing the importance of figuring out how to solve problems rather than to merely follow directions.

Broderick urged students to take courses outside of their fields of specialization in order to learn how to think broadly. Moreover, he advised that students apply the material they learn in class and show initiative, rather than plan on listing courses at their next job interview.

Broderick used an anecdote to show the importance of knowledge in computer science. He talked about how a college friend was expelled from Cornell University but is now a successful Microsoft employee, all because he obsessively coded computer games instead of attending classes.

The idea, Broderick said, is to try things out regardless of whether or not one succeeds in making weighty contributions.

Some students complained about the lack of content and disjointed format of the lecture. "He did give some good advice," Kira Glassman '08 said, "but I thought the lecture was vague and kind of all over the place."

Greg Joondeph-Breidbart '10 said the the speaker "was skimpy with [answering students'] questions.