[Confirmed] Our PM Lee Hsien Loong is a nerd!

[Rogue Trader]

PM Lee Wrote A Sudoku Solver In C++, Wants To Learn Haskell
BYJOLENE HEE
ON APRIL 27, 2015

This article originally appeared on Vulcan Post.

Besides his pink shirts and down-to-earth demeanor, here’s one more reason why Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is cool — he knows how to code.

Singapore may be rounding up Smart Nation Innovations Week for 2015, but our journey to become a Smart Nation continues. And the one who’s helming the nation is also leading the charge for tech innovation in Singapore: you might have missed this snippet in his Founders Forum Smart Nation speech a week ago, where he revealed his secret love of coding.

Image Credit: yourviet.blogspot.com​

“I have set up the Smart Nation Programme Office… to use technology to achieve social and economic objectives, and to make a difference in all our lives. The Smart Nation Programme Office lives in the Prime Minister’s department. I take a personal interest in this. 40 years ago, after doing a math degree, I went on to study computer science, on my father’s advice. He said there is a future in that, and he was right.

So for the Smart Nation Programme Office, I have put Minister Vivian Balakrishnan in charge, reporting to me. Vivian is both a hacker and a dabbler – He used to be an eye surgeon but since he does not get to operate on eyes nowadays, he dabbles in building simple robots, assembling watches, wireless devices and programming apps. His day job is to be the Minister for the Environment and Water Resources, and so when he builds apps, he uses the real time APIs generated by the Ministry. That’s called user-testing. I used to enjoy this; it is a long time since I’ve done anything. The last programme I wrote was a Sudoku solver in C++ several years ago, so I’m out of date.

My children are in IT, two of them – both graduated from MIT. One of them browsed a book and said, “Here, read this”. It said “Haskell – learn you a Haskell for great good”, and one day that will be my retirement reading.”

(Source: pmo.gov.sg)
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Haskell, for the uninitiated, is a functional programming language. It’s pretty impressive that Prime Minister Lee plans to learn Haskell after retirement, since it’s known to be a particularly difficult language to learn. Of course, C++ also has thereputation of being complex, and PM Lee already has the skills to code an app in that. It looks like there’s truly no man better to take the lead in Singapore’s ideal of a Smart Nation — and we can’t wait to see what fantastic apps he’ll come up with in a few decades’ time.

 

[Rogue Trader]

Can he compete with this neh?

 

[kryonlight]

Haskell is outdated. The newest kids on the block are Clojure and Scala.

 

[mojito]

Haha.. he is just like us. My vote goes to you, sir!

 

[phouse3]

It is a dumb nation that made Cheryl's birthday problem go viral.

The mental exercising like machines ("programming logic") won't make a person smarter. This kind of a priori logic problem should not be catching a nation's imagination. Schools should ban it! It will lead the nation down one path because there is only one unique, correct answer - Cheryl has only one birthday. It is not a random problem where you apply problem-solving skills to get a solution. The real world is not fixed like someone's birthday. It is messy and ever changing. A manager working in an MNC faces changes every hour (from head office, customers, the environment, etc.) and has to adjust his decision constantly.

Singaporeans are known to be well-schooled but a real pain when relating to as fellow citizens or policymakers. We see loads of scholars in the government. Sitoh YP has warned about out-of-touch politicians, Baey YK about onerous policies, Goh CT about Minister's political longevity.

No one batted an eyelid when the PAP set aside $100 billion for MRT expansion. I forsee Singapore in deep trouble very soon.

 

[tanwahtiu]

his farker PM is out of date. C++ is out of date. Facebook and Apple use Objective C++, Google use Java and now Microsoft lanlan turn open source and use python. JavaScript is use for web browser for responsive web. Now hmtl5 and CSS3 is getting popular with web base browser. Apple is using their own Xcode and now Swift?

Similancheow angmoh codes writing technologies so messy and unsustainable you follow them for fuck?

An nation of white trash people created nonsense and rubbish computer codes writing system and shitting all over the places. They need Asian, Japs and Chinese to clean up for them. Chinese manufacture computer hardwares and Japs write codes and you get Toyota car type stable car technologies with no or low breakdown.

Each software has their own usage. Java is for writing application and their applet is for web browser.

Angmoh are stupid and they cannot change the basic foundation of their codes because they started of as shitter technology in the first place.

If angmoh still make cars you still get Holden old model on the road and breakdown more often. Angmohs has small pea brains only think one straight way and like to glorify themselves.

Think Japanese and try Shinto religion and even Jap religion make more sense than Vatican Christian.

Roman created the Bible from lies, twist and turn stories to control the citizens but NOT to advance the teaching of religion. Some shit old people, Presbyterians as they were called, coined the Bible Word of God.

Word of God? Like putting Words into God's mouth? Even Muslim dare not declare Quran is Word of God and Jesus was the teacher. The 12 Apostles did not say Jesus is Son of God in Quran?

If Paul pansai was mentioned in the Bibles it was also Word of God? Solomon sex stories was also Word of God? Kill people also Word of God?

Angmohs better off trade opium with the Chinese again like they did in 1800s? Leglised illegal opium trade was the best industrial revolution angmohs ever created when they were a poor nation of peasants whereas Chinese was a prosperous nation with advance medical science, education, technology and law and cultures during that time.

PM Lee Wrote A Sudoku Solver In C++, Wants To Learn Haskell

Haskell, for the uninitiated, is a functional programming language. It’s pretty impressive that Prime Minister Lee plans to learn Haskell after retirement, since it’s known to be a particularly difficult language to learn. Of course, C++ also has thereputation of being complex, and PM Lee already has the skills to code an app in that. It looks like there’s truly no man better to take the lead in Singapore’s ideal of a Smart Nation — and we can’t wait to see what fantastic apps he’ll come up with in a few decades’ time.

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[tonychat]

Election coming.. So the usual bullshit wayang... And trying to insult the intelligence of the people again.. Go e me a fucking break lah.. So now u know why the media is being controlled by the PAP.. It is to do all the bullshit wayang, self praise and self glorification.

 

[McDonaldsKid]

KNN wear pink shirts, be down to earth and know how to code can be considered cool? :oIo:

Slap in the face for all the cool cats.

 

[halsey02]

Election coming.. So the usual bullshit wayang... And trying to insult the intelligence of the people again.. Go e me a fucking break lah.. So now u know why the media is being controlled by the PAP.. It is to do all the bullshit wayang, self praise and self glorification.

What so great about coding?...it is so common these, days, kids code; I know a couple of 20's+ code. I learnt a bit of programming in the past, when main frame was the norm, took a short course on Fortran & Pascual...& BASIC, learnt basic Unix, SCO-Unix, as these was part of my work at that time & later years an interest in Linux...know some basic coding..

What the bloody so great that mee siam mai hum can code....if he can create something that the entire mankind can benefit or start a tech company like say..."APPLE"...or be another Steve Jobs...I salute!....other than knowing coding...what a load of bull!

 

[soIsee]

As I always said.

Papa should have left him to his own devices and he will either be a great mathematician, computer scientist or find job with Apple or Google! LoL

 

[mojito]

What so great about coding?...it is so common these, days, kids code; I know a couple of 20's+ code. I learnt a bit of programming in the past, when main frame was the norm, took a short course on Fortran & Pascual...& BASIC, learnt basic Unix, SCO-Unix, as these was part of my work at that time & later years an interest in Linux...know some basic coding..

What the bloody so great that mee siam mai hum can code....if he can create something that the entire mankind can benefit or start a tech company like say..."APPLE"...or be another Steve Jobs...I salute!....other than knowing coding...what a load of bull!

It is the new hip thing, like high finance, biomed and semiconductors last time. Every time something hip comes along, Loong wants to follow and import more FTs to do the jobs sinkies don't want to do.

 

[Equalisation]

Yes. He is not seen as someone who is steady and in cruise control !:o

 

[laksaboy]

Besides his pink shirts and down-to-earth demeanor, here’s one more reason why Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong is cool

Nice try Jolene.

 

[bakkuttay]

Pinkyloong lymphoma n prostate cancer 加油呀！！！！

 

[yellowarse]

As I always said.

Papa should have left him to his own devices and he will either be a great mathematician, computer scientist or find job with Apple or Google! LoL

Absolutely agree. Pinkie was never cut out to be a politician or leader. Doesn't have the chutzpah to be a Steve Jobs or Bill Gates either.

He'd have made a fine ivory tower academic, or a computer geek working in the IT department of an MNC.

 

[xpo2015]

With so many PMOs Permanent Secretarys Ministars and MPs.

Anybody can do his job too!