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Computer science is the study of computation, information, and automation. [1][2][3] Computer science spans theoretical disciplines (such as algorithms, theory of computation, and information theory) to applied disciplines (including the design and implementation of hardware and software). [4][5][6] Algorithms and data structures are central to ...
Contents. Quantum computing. A quantum computer is a computer that exploits quantum mechanical phenomena. On small scales, physical matter exhibits properties of both particles and waves, and quantum computing leverages this behavior using specialized hardware.
Computation. A computation is any type of arithmetic or non-arithmetic calculation that is well-defined. [1][2] Common examples of computation are mathematical equation solving and the execution of computer algorithms. Mechanical or electronic devices (or, historically, people) that perform computations are known as computers.
Theory of computation. In theoretical computer science and mathematics, the theory of computation is the branch that deals with what problems can be solved on a model of computation, using an algorithm, how efficiently they can be solved or to what degree (e.g., approximate solutions versus precise ones). The field is divided into three major ...
Digital physics is a speculative idea suggesting that the universe can be conceived of as a vast, digital computation device, or as the output of a deterministic or probabilistic computer program. [1] The hypothesis that the universe is a digital computer was proposed by Konrad Zuse in his 1969 book Rechnender Raum [2] (" Calculating-space "). [3]
Church–Turing thesis. In computability theory, the Church–Turing thesis (also known as computability thesis, [1] the Turing–Church thesis, [2] the Church–Turing conjecture, Church's thesis, Church's conjecture, and Turing's thesis) is a thesis about the nature of computable functions. It states that a function on the natural numbers can ...
Computational complexity. In computer science, the computational complexity or simply complexity of an algorithm is the amount of resources required to run it. [1] Particular focus is given to computation time (generally measured by the number of needed elementary operations) and memory storage requirements. The complexity of a problem is the ...
Because of this problem of undecidability in the formal language of computation, Wolfram terms this inability to "shortcut" a system (or "program"), or otherwise describe its behavior in a simple way, "computational irreducibility." The idea demonstrates that there are occurrences where theory's predictions are effectively not possible.