My friend and I were working on creating algorithms for our homework. We got stuck and decided to look at the lecture notes for help. The notes went over how to improve the runtime on some basic sorting algorithms. I was having trouble understanding the quicksort algorithm, so my friend googled it to see if she could find an article, video, or picture to help me understand the concept. After sifting through the search results for a while she found a helpful article. I was still having trouble visualizing the concept so my friend switched to the images tab on google. We found a few helpful images and then this one catch her eye. She clicked on the image and began laughing. As soon as I processed what was happening I began laughing too.

One of the main problems that computer scientists face is improving the runtime of algorithms. Sorting algorithms take a particular precedence since they are used to improve the runtime of other more advanced algorithms. The meme plays on the fact that if you run a different sorting algorithm you can’t get the horrible runtime it receives. It doesn’t fix the problem but it makes life easier for a little while. My friend is a computer science major with a game development emphasis. As part of the computer science community she collects and forwards a myriad of folklore specific to this unique group. Computer science folklore is unique and reflects the beliefs and the culture of the group. Per my informant, as well as personal experience, computer science majors have a unique sense of humor that develops from the difficult coursework, the long hours spent on the computer coding, and the group dynamic required to get through the major. This humor is often expressed through memes and jokes only members of this group can understand and appreciate.