Society of Minds

Surabaya, early 2015. On a flight back to Jakarta with two ITB faculty members (also TOKI coaches), Ibu Liem Inggriani (Inge) and Pak Adi Mulyanto, we were discussing the future of education. I remember proposing a simple framing: IPA (natural sciences) is how students interact with nature, IPS (social sciences) is how they interact with others. With the growing presence of computational machines around us, a third pillar, CP (computational thinking), how we interact with them, felt both important and urgent.

This month, I've had the privilege of hosting Ikatan Alumni Tim Olimpiade Komputer Indonesia (IA TOKI) friends at SIRCLO HQ, sharing with our leadership and tech teams. In sequence: Alham Fikri Aji on Artificial Intelligence, Yohanes Nugroho on Cyber Security, @Mushthofa on Game Theory, and soon Achmad Zaky on another topic. Thank you, Ji, Jo, Mush, Zak, for taking the time.

I may not be able to change Indonesia, let alone the world, yet. But I can try to make a difference in the lives around me, and in the organizations I'm part of. To you who happen to be reading this, perhaps start with Computational Thinking, then explore further based on your interests, role, or field. And if you have young kids, you might want to look up "Bebras Indonesia."

Bandung, early 2025. In a quiet home where Bu Inge lived, I was once again humbled by her clarity of thought, even in fragile times. We had a brief debate where I had oversimplified AI as ML over Big Data. She gently pointed me back to fundamentals, and to a book she had mentioned several times including on that same flight, by Marvin Minsky.

In memoriam of Bu Inge. One regret remains: that we never had the chance to host you at SIRCLO HQ for a foundational session on computational thinking, the very lens that connects all the topics above. But seeing the sessions delivered by your students and mentees, and hearing a thoughtful audience specifically praise the humility of the speakers, I'm reminded how far your positive influence on society has already reached.

— Love, Dewi Yuliani & Brian (finally getting to Minsky's book, after 18 years since Toba's Institut Teknologi Del trip)