MVC example from real, biological life
Lately I've been thinking a lot about software design patterns and software architecture in an attempt of being a better software developer (or just being one). Anyway, too much talk, I want to get to the subject because I think it's very nice.
You've probably heard of the Model-View-Controller pattern which is a big hype nowadays thanks to the Ruby on Rails web framework. It's all about separating data access (Model) from data presentation (View) and that's all. You may wonder where's the third part, the Controller. It's in between gluing the two parts together. The controller, while an important aspect of the MVC paradigm, is not as important as the idea of separation data and presentation.
You've also probably read a lot of examples about MVC, involving web application that suddenly have to switch from a certain database vendor to another or output data in multiple formats, like HTML, JSON, PDF, etc. Well, here's a little MVC example that actually lies within your own body.
It's the very human act of expressing ideas, either written or spoken.
When someone is expressing her ideas in speech she uses an MVC system where data is the idea itself (what she thinks) that sits in the Model (our conscience and perception of the surrounding world), the View is the language in which the ideas are presented and the Controller is the sum of biological and associated neuronic structures that let us map these ideas to comprehensible and logical sounds (in a normal human being).
It's true that I exaggerated a little about the limits between the parts of this system and that these are very blurry line that separate them... nevertheless is the idea that matters. If it weren't for this MVC system inside us, speaking foreign languages would be impossible.
P.S. Who?! Me? A nerd?!
P.S.S. I'm not implying that my English view is perfect