Publication details
Search for the language of algorithms
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| Year of publication | 2012 |
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| Description | One of the crucial landmarks in the history of programming is ALGOL 60, an 'algorithmic language'. This language was explicitly designed to be 'as close as possible to mathematical notation'. What were the reasons behind advocating mathematical notation for the formulation of algorithms? Are there any common traits between those and the ones for calling computers mathematical machines? Nowadays, the word algoithm denotes such solutions to a problem that do not require the use of creative thinking. of the solver is not necessary. Such solution were described in mathematical texts since antiquity. The attempts at explaining such procedures accurately can commonly be found in mathematical articles. In mathematics of the early 20th century, formalization of the language was one of the ways to avoid the danger of making a mistake. In my talk, I will show the echoes of Turing's 1936 and 1950 papers in the search of the language for algorithms and explore the connection between computer science and mathematics which seems to be so obvious. |