- #1
geologist
- 19
- 1
I like to start a graduate program in scientific computing within the next 4-5 years, once my kids are a little older, my wife finishes her degree, and I have more money saved. In the meantime, I’m not going to waste time. Using the MIT challenge completed by Scott Young as inspiration, I’ve made the decision to complete my own challenge, spread over two years (due to kids and work), with a focus in scientific computing. Specifically, I’d like to complete the approximate equivalent of a BS in scientific computing, with a focus on environmental science/geoscience applications. I’ll aim to study 10-20 hours per week.I’ve completed an MS in geology (circa 2010) and work in environmental consulting, so some of what I learn will be applicable to my profession. My main motivation for completing this is because I find the subject fascinating and it gives me something to focus on (as opposed to dabbling). I also understand that this doesn’t replace official education, but with family and work obligations, going back to school isn’t practical, and I don’t have the patience to wait until I’m 37 to study this topic.I’ve created a general outline of the types of courses/topics I would need to take. For those who have gone through a similar program, is there anything significant I’ve left out?
· Calculus I-III (currently using Elementary calculus by Keisler with supplemental videos on MIT open and Udemy)
· Differential Equations (Elementary calculus has a chapter at the end that covers this)
· Introductory Linear Algebra course/textbook
· Statistics with R course on Coursera (introductory probability, inferential statistics, linear regression, Bayesian statistics).
· Introduction to Computer science and programming using Python (on edx or MIT open)
· Computational thinking and data science (same as above)
· QGIS 3.0 for GIS professionals (Udemy)
· DataCamp GIS with R tutorials
· Calculus based Physics 1 & 2 (book/course TBD)
· Applied Groundwater Modeling (textbook)
· Global Warming Science (MIT open) or Principles of Planetary Climate (textbook)
· Modeling Environmental Complexity (MIT open) or Environmental Modeling: Finding simplicity in complexity (textbook)
· Introduction to High-performance computing (online course or book, TBD) or equivalent
· Independent project, posted to personal website, github, or similar
· Calculus I-III (currently using Elementary calculus by Keisler with supplemental videos on MIT open and Udemy)
· Differential Equations (Elementary calculus has a chapter at the end that covers this)
· Introductory Linear Algebra course/textbook
· Statistics with R course on Coursera (introductory probability, inferential statistics, linear regression, Bayesian statistics).
· Introduction to Computer science and programming using Python (on edx or MIT open)
· Computational thinking and data science (same as above)
· QGIS 3.0 for GIS professionals (Udemy)
· DataCamp GIS with R tutorials
· Calculus based Physics 1 & 2 (book/course TBD)
· Applied Groundwater Modeling (textbook)
· Global Warming Science (MIT open) or Principles of Planetary Climate (textbook)
· Modeling Environmental Complexity (MIT open) or Environmental Modeling: Finding simplicity in complexity (textbook)
· Introduction to High-performance computing (online course or book, TBD) or equivalent
· Independent project, posted to personal website, github, or similar