Category Theory
Category theory is a branch of mathematics that formalizes abstract structures and relationships between them using categories, which consist of objects and morphisms (arrows) that connect them. It provides a high-level framework for understanding and connecting concepts across various fields, including mathematics, computer science, and logic, by focusing on composition and universal properties rather than internal details.
Developers should learn category theory when working in functional programming, type theory, or formal verification, as it underpins concepts like monads, functors, and algebraic data types used in languages like Haskell and Scala. It is also valuable for designing composable software architectures, understanding category-theoretic models in database theory, or applying abstract reasoning to solve complex problems in a structured way.