The bi-weekly ODD seminar series at CCSE: Discussion: Does "algorithmic thinking" have a cousin "statistical thinking"?

Computational thinking are by some defined as the capability to resolve problems algorithmically and logically, including skills related to representing, organizing and identifying patterns in data. This may be seen as leaning in a direction of discrete and observable processes. The Norwegian translation to "algoritmisk tenkning" can be read even clearer in the direction of defining explicit, deterministic instructions to achieve a well understood outcome. At the same time, computational thinking is not only promoted as a means to allow the development of concrete code/algorithms, but also as a way of thinking constructively about phenomena in a variety of fields. And it is clearly not the case that all phenomena in nature and society only involve discrete, directly observed entities - to the contrary, many relations and processes we may be interested in are continuous and probabilistic in their nature, where we have to constructively relate to risks, uncertainties and underlying patterns. An interesting question is whether the ability to devise algorithms to solve well defined problems and the ability to relate constructively to questions in an uncertain world should be seen as two aspects of the same skillset, or as separate skills that are cultivated through separate learning experiences.