I think it really pertains to using merkle trees. If you take a deep look into how bitcoin actually is implemented merkle trees are the base with which it is formed around.
This. 1000x. The beautiful thing is if you approach the conversation as one about a merkle tree built on a consensus algorithm, while avoiding the term 'blockchain', it's still possible to get folks excited about the tech.
I have no issue with the DS/A questions myself, but their use use and arbitrary nature of acceptance as right or wrong coupled with the ability of the interviewer's own bias to take it in whichever direction they desire is full of land mines. And I had never thought of ease with which the process could be undermined even if it where to be improved.
Ignore it at your own peril. I've hit it head to the point of self testing its existence. I was floored by the situations, comments and outright unprofessional treatment I've received while interviewing with the top companies, Amazon and Apple among them. And they are not alone. Smaller companies can be much worse.
See how long you last playing those games. Who in their right mind, other than the desperate among us, would work for a company that would do such a thing?
It's not zero sum. As somebody who has come from money and made a lot of money in a field entirely unrelated to my parents and with zero financial help from them after university, a lot of the disparities I see between myself and others in my situation who came from more disadvantaged backgrounds is that they spend their money far less wisely because they think that, for example, a house in the country will make them happy. I know from my childhood that is not necessarily the case.
I commend you for pointing out what they don't, or can't, see. I have all but given up countering the "I'm invincible" crowd. However, I'm very empathetic to the view point, I myself held it at one time - at one time.
To be clear: I definitely worry about my future at times, and I don't think I'm invincible. I intended to make a comparison with (especially) blue-collar work.
Because I do strongly believe that society favors the higher-educated, or at least those who are good at abstract thought, and I think it's very unlikely that this will change in the near future. And if it does, we're probably all pretty fucked.
That said, I'm not disagreeing with you (both). Just wanted to clarify my position.
Consider yourself lucky. It's never happened to me. I've only been charged numerous cancellation fees. Im starting to think i can just walked there faster.
