The Programmer's Brain

  • 4h 49m
  • Felienne Hermans
  • Manning Publications
  • 2021

Your brain responds in a predictable way when it encounters new or difficult tasks. This unique book teaches you concrete techniques rooted in cognitive science that will improve the way you learn and think about code.

Summary

In The Programmer’s Brain: What every programmer needs to know about cognition you will learn:

  • Fast and effective ways to master new programming languages
  • Speed reading skills to quickly comprehend new code
  • Techniques to unravel the meaning of complex code
  • Ways to learn new syntax and keep it memorized
  • Writing code that is easy for others to read
  • Picking the right names for your variables
  • Making your codebase more understandable to newcomers
  • Onboarding new developers to your team

Learn how to optimize your brain’s natural cognitive processes to read code more easily, write code faster, and pick up new languages in much less time. This book will help you through the confusion you feel when faced with strange and complex code, and explain a codebase in ways that can make a new team member productive in days!

About the technology

Take advantage of your brain’s natural processes to be a better programmer. Techniques based in cognitive science make it possible to learn new languages faster, improve productivity, reduce the need for code rewrites, and more. This unique book will help you achieve these gains.

About the book

The Programmer’s Brain unlocks the way we think about code. It offers scientifically sound techniques that can radically improve the way you master new technology, comprehend code, and memorize syntax. You’ll learn how to benefit from productive struggle and turn confusion into a learning tool. Along the way, you’ll discover how to create study resources as you become an expert at teaching yourself and bringing new colleagues up to speed.

What's inside

  • Understand how your brain sees code
  • Speed reading skills to learn code quickly
  • Techniques to unravel complex code
  • Tips for making codebases understandable

In this Book

  • Foreword
  • About This Book
  • About the Cover Illustration
  • Decoding Your Confusion While Coding
  • Speed Reading for Code
  • How to Learn Programming Syntax Quickly
  • How to Read Complex Code
  • Reaching a Deeper Understanding of Code
  • Getting Better at Solving Programming Problems
  • Misconceptions—Bugs in Thinking
  • How to Get Better at Naming Things
  • Avoiding Bad Code and Cognitive Load—Two Frameworks
  • Getting Better at Solving Complex Problems
  • The Act of Writing Code
  • Designing and Improving Larger Systems
  • How to Onboard New Developers
  • Epilogue
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