Turing machineA Turing machine is a mathematical model of computation describing an abstract machine that manipulates symbols on a strip of tape according to a table of rules. Despite the model's simplicity, it is capable of implementing any computer algorithm. The machine operates on an infinite memory tape divided into discrete cells, each of which can hold a single symbol drawn from a finite set of symbols called the alphabet of the machine. It has a "head" that, at any point in the machine's operation, is positioned over one of these cells, and a "state" selected from a finite set of states.
Decidability (logic)In logic, a true/false decision problem is decidable if there exists an effective method for deriving the correct answer. Zeroth-order logic (propositional logic) is decidable, whereas first-order and higher-order logic are not. Logical systems are decidable if membership in their set of logically valid formulas (or theorems) can be effectively determined. A theory (set of sentences closed under logical consequence) in a fixed logical system is decidable if there is an effective method for determining whether arbitrary formulas are included in the theory.
Recursive languageIn mathematics, logic and computer science, a formal language (a set of finite sequences of symbols taken from a fixed alphabet) is called recursive if it is a recursive subset of the set of all possible finite sequences over the alphabet of the language. Equivalently, a formal language is recursive if there exists a Turing machine that, when given a finite sequence of symbols as input, always halts and accepts it if it belongs to the language and halts and rejects it otherwise.
Decider (Turing machine)In computability theory, a decider is a Turing machine that halts for every input. A decider is also called a total Turing machine as it represents a total function. Because it always halts, such a machine is able to decide whether a given string is a member of a formal language. The class of languages which can be decided by such machines is the set of recursive languages. Given an arbitrary Turing machine, determining whether it is a decider is an undecidable problem.
Church–Turing thesisIn computability theory, the Church–Turing thesis (also known as computability thesis, the Turing–Church thesis, 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 be calculated by an effective method if and only if it is computable by a Turing machine. The thesis is named after American mathematician Alonzo Church and the British mathematician Alan Turing.
Turing completenessIn computability theory, a system of data-manipulation rules (such as a model of computation, a computer's instruction set, a programming language, or a cellular automaton) is said to be Turing-complete or computationally universal if it can be used to simulate any Turing machine (devised by English mathematician and computer scientist Alan Turing). This means that this system is able to recognize or decide other data-manipulation rule sets. Turing completeness is used as a way to express the power of such a data-manipulation rule set.
Universal Turing machineIn computer science, a universal Turing machine (UTM) is a Turing machine capable of computing any computable sequence, as described by Alan Turing in his seminal paper "On Computable Numbers, with an Application to the Entscheidungsproblem". Common sense might say that a universal machine is impossible, but Turing proves that it is possible. He suggested that we may compare a man in the process of computing a real number to a machine which is only capable of a finite number of conditions q 1: q 2 . ....
Recursively enumerable languageIn mathematics, logic and computer science, a formal language is called recursively enumerable (also recognizable, partially decidable, semidecidable, Turing-acceptable or Turing-recognizable) if it is a recursively enumerable subset in the set of all possible words over the alphabet of the language, i.e., if there exists a Turing machine which will enumerate all valid strings of the language. Recursively enumerable languages are known as type-0 languages in the Chomsky hierarchy of formal languages.
Undecidable problemIn computability theory and computational complexity theory, an undecidable problem is a decision problem for which it is proved to be impossible to construct an algorithm that always leads to a correct yes-or-no answer. The halting problem is an example: it can be proven that there is no algorithm that correctly determines whether arbitrary programs eventually halt when run. A decision problem is a question which, for every input in some infinite set of inputs, answers "yes" or "no"..
Primitive recursive functionIn computability theory, a primitive recursive function is, roughly speaking, a function that can be computed by a computer program whose loops are all "for" loops (that is, an upper bound of the number of iterations of every loop can be determined before entering the loop). Primitive recursive functions form a strict subset of those general recursive functions that are also total functions. The importance of primitive recursive functions lies in the fact that most computable functions that are studied in number theory (and more generally in mathematics) are primitive recursive.
Turing reductionIn computability theory, a Turing reduction from a decision problem to a decision problem is an oracle machine which decides problem given an oracle for (Rogers 1967, Soare 1987). It can be understood as an algorithm that could be used to solve if it had available to it a subroutine for solving . The concept can be analogously applied to function problems. If a Turing reduction from to exists, then every algorithm for can be used to produce an algorithm for , by inserting the algorithm for at each place where the oracle machine computing queries the oracle for .
Nondeterministic Turing machineIn theoretical computer science, a nondeterministic Turing machine (NTM) is a theoretical model of computation whose governing rules specify more than one possible action when in some given situations. That is, an NTM's next state is not completely determined by its action and the current symbol it sees, unlike a deterministic Turing machine. NTMs are sometimes used in thought experiments to examine the abilities and limits of computers.
Alan TuringAlan Mathison Turing (ˈtjʊərɪŋ; 23 June 1912 – 7 June 1954) was an English mathematician, computer scientist, logician, cryptanalyst, philosopher, and theoretical biologist. Turing was highly influential in the development of theoretical computer science, providing a formalisation of the concepts of algorithm and computation with the Turing machine, which can be considered a model of a general-purpose computer. He is widely considered to be the father of theoretical computer science and artificial intelligence.
Decidability of first-order theories of the real numbersIn mathematical logic, a first-order language of the real numbers is the set of all well-formed sentences of first-order logic that involve universal and existential quantifiers and logical combinations of equalities and inequalities of expressions over real variables. The corresponding first-order theory is the set of sentences that are actually true of the real numbers. There are several different such theories, with different expressive power, depending on the primitive operations that are allowed to be used in the expression.
Probabilistic Turing machineIn theoretical computer science, a probabilistic Turing machine is a non-deterministic Turing machine that chooses between the available transitions at each point according to some probability distribution. As a consequence, a probabilistic Turing machine can—unlike a deterministic Turing Machine—have stochastic results; that is, on a given input and instruction state machine, it may have different run times, or it may not halt at all; furthermore, it may accept an input in one execution and reject the same input in another execution.
Decision problemIn computability theory and computational complexity theory, a decision problem is a computational problem that can be posed as a yes–no question of the input values. An example of a decision problem is deciding by means of an algorithm whether a given natural number is prime. Another is the problem "given two numbers x and y, does x evenly divide y?". The answer is either 'yes' or 'no' depending upon the values of x and y. A method for solving a decision problem, given in the form of an algorithm, is called a decision procedure for that problem.
RecursionRecursion occurs when the definition of a concept or process depends on a simpler version of itself. Recursion is used in a variety of disciplines ranging from linguistics to logic. The most common application of recursion is in mathematics and computer science, where a function being defined is applied within its own definition. While this apparently defines an infinite number of instances (function values), it is often done in such a way that no infinite loop or infinite chain of references can occur.
EntscheidungsproblemIn mathematics and computer science, the Entscheidungsproblem; ɛntˈʃaɪ̯dʊŋspʁoˌbleːm) is a challenge posed by David Hilbert and Wilhelm Ackermann in 1928. The problem asks for an algorithm that considers, as input, a statement and answers "yes" or "no" according to whether the statement is universally valid, i.e., valid in every structure satisfying the axioms. By the completeness theorem of first-order logic, a statement is universally valid if and only if it can be deduced from the axioms, so the Entscheidungsproblem can also be viewed as asking for an algorithm to decide whether a given statement is provable from the axioms using the rules of logic.
Real closed fieldIn mathematics, a real closed field is a field F that has the same first-order properties as the field of real numbers. Some examples are the field of real numbers, the field of real algebraic numbers, and the field of hyperreal numbers. A real closed field is a field F in which any of the following equivalent conditions is true: F is elementarily equivalent to the real numbers. In other words, it has the same first-order properties as the reals: any sentence in the first-order language of fields is true in F if and only if it is true in the reals.
Recursion (computer science)In computer science, recursion is a method of solving a computational problem where the solution depends on solutions to smaller instances of the same problem. Recursion solves such recursive problems by using functions that call themselves from within their own code. The approach can be applied to many types of problems, and recursion is one of the central ideas of computer science. The power of recursion evidently lies in the possibility of defining an infinite set of objects by a finite statement.
