Everything about Computation totally explained
Computation is a general term for any type of
information processing that can be represented mathematically. This includes phenomena ranging from human thinking to calculations with a more narrow meaning. Computation is a process following a well-defined
model that's understood and can be expressed in an
algorithm,
protocol,
network topology, etc.
Classes of computation
Computation can be classified by at least three orthogonal criteria:
digital vs
analog,
sequential vs
parallel,
batch vs
interactive.
In practice, digital computation is often used to simulate natural processes (for example,
Evolutionary computation), including those that are more naturally described by analog models of computation (for example,
Artificial neural network). In this situation, it's important to distinguish between the mechanism of computation and the simulated model.
Computations as a physical phenomenon
A computation can be seen as a purely physical phenomenon occurring inside a closed
physical system called a
computer.
Examples of such physical systems include
digital computers,
quantum computers,
DNA computers,
molecular computers,
analog computers or
wetware computers.
This point of view is the one adopted by the branch of theoretical physics called the
physics of computation.
An even more drastic point of view is the postulate of
digital physics that the evolution of the universe itself is a computation.
Computation is a form of calculation, the procedure of calculating; determining something by mathematical or logical methods or problem solving that involves numbers or quantities.
Mathematical models of computation
In the
theory of computation, mathematical models of computers are defined. A computation is the evolution over discrete time epochs of this model.
Typical mathematical models of computers are the following:
History
The word computation has an archaic meaning (from its
Latin etymological roots), but the word has come back in use with the arising of a new scientific discipline:
computer science.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Computation'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://computation.totallyexplained.com">Computation Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
