https://arxiv.org/abs/2404.10002

Abstract (emphasis mine):

The concept of a ‘Ballmer Peak’ was first proposed in 2007, postulating that there exists a very specific blood alcohol content which confers superhuman programming ability. More generally, there is a commonly held belief among software engineers that coding is easier and more productive after a few drinks. Using the industry standard for assessment of coding ability, we conducted a search for such a peak and more generally investigated the effect of different amounts of alcohol on performance. We conclusively refute the existence of a specific peak with large magnitude, but with p < 0.001 find that there was a significant positive effect to a low amount of alcohol - slightly less than two drinks - on programming ability.

  • ArtyomEnglish
    32·
    6 months ago

    Apparently Mr. Ballmer is a real programmer at Microsoft. Even better, he was still working at Microsoft in 2007 when the comic came out, but retired a few years later.