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cargo cult programming: n. A style of (incompetent) programming dominated by ritual inclusion
of code or program structures that serve no real purpose. A cargo cult
programmer will usually explain the extra code as a way of working around
some bug encountered in the past, but usually neither the bug nor the
reason the code apparently avoided the bug was ever fully understood
(compare shotgun debugging,
voodoo programming). The term ‘cargo cult’ is a reference to aboriginal
religions that grew up in the South Pacific after World War II. The
practices of these cults center on building elaborate mockups of airplanes
and military style landing strips in the hope of bringing the return of the
god-like airplanes that brought such marvelous cargo during the war.
Hackish usage probably derives from Richard Feynman's characterization of
certain practices as “cargo cult science” in his book
Surely You're Joking, Mr. Feynman! (W. W. Norton
& Co, New York 1985, ISBN 0-393-01921-7).
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