Teaching DSA in the AI era with Kevin Lin

In this episode, Kevin Lin (UW) and I take a broader look at the relevance of data structures and algorithms in today’s real-world problems, the role of friction in learning, and the impact of AI at different levels. We also explore online versus in-person teaching in the context of DSA, address common misconceptions, and discuss Kevin’s approach to teaching the subject. Finally, we touch on how he is reimagining computing education. This was a blast, enjoy! Mentions during the episode: CSE 373 Spring 2026 Visual Data Structures Cheat-Sheet BRIDGES Josh Hug  CS 61B Spring 2026  AlgoMasterIO CS 1332 Data Structures & Algorithms Visualization Tool LeetCode GeeksforGeeks COMPSCI 201 - Duke Owen Astrachan  Mark Liffiton Artturi Tilanterä dissertation  The Computer Always Wins  Reimagining CS Education  The Computing Education Things deep dives relevant to this episode: #35 — In Defense of Software Craftsmanship #36 — Delegating Understanding #39 — Is a Computing Degree Still Valuable? Where to find Kevin: Website  Faculty Webpage GitHub