Questions tagged [terminology]
Questions about how specific notions have to be understood as well as conventions of notation.
1,017
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Does the callback concept of programming has any basis in computer science?
Although I seriously code with computer languages in general since 2010 and as an amateur programmer with programming languages in particular since 2015 (primarily Bash and JavaScript imperative ...
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1answer
38 views
What is the result of a reduction operation called?
Is there a commonly used term for the result of a reduction operation?
"reductant" does not quite sound right...
0
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1answer
48 views
Exact meaning of metalinguistic variable
Consider the following BNF
<join-command> ::= <string> + <string>
In this context <join-command> and <...
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1answer
40 views
What's the difference between phi and lambda in regular expression?
I've been learning on Formal Languages and Automata of Peter Linz(6th edition).
In the chapter 3 of this book, it explains the primitive regular expression.
But I don't know what is the difference ...
3
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1answer
127 views
maximum coverage version of dominating set
The dominating set problem is :
Given an $n$ vertex graph $G=(V,E)$, find a set $S(\subseteq V)$ such that $|N[S]|$ is exactly $n$, where $$N[S] := \{x~ | \text{ either $x$ or a neighbor of $x$ ...
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14 views
Is the standard terminology “logic operation” or “logical operation”?
I've heard both terms "logic operation" or "logical operation" used. Is either more common?
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102 views
Was there an attempt to create a programming language aimed for maximal abstraction?
I am trying to understand if a programming language can have totally or almost totally the abstraction level shared between generally all human languages so that it would allow a human to code a ...
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1answer
47 views
Difference between task and process
I'd like to know which is the difference between a task and a process in computer science. I'm studying a course on real-time systems and there are some definitions that I don't know.
Thank you in ...
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1answer
28 views
WebHook versus API
I've read many blogs about this but I still get somehow confused, specially why a webhook is a thing vs an API and not just a subset of API.
The way I interpret from most places (and interpret is ...
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1answer
17 views
What category does questions like “Given n points on 2D plane find …” belong to
Not after a specific answer, do following questions belong to same set of problem types?
Given n points in on 2D plane, find 4 or 5 , or m subset of points with less total distant to each other than ...
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16 views
Variable that takes values of $\left\{0, 1\right\}$ is called binary. How about variable that takes values of $\left\{-1, 1\right\}$?
Variable that takes values of $\left\{0, 1\right\}$ is called binary. How about variable that takes values of $\left\{-1, 1\right\}$? Is there a specific name for such variable? I search over the web ...
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67 views
Run-Time environments
I was reading about Run-Time Environments.
In the Dragon book (2nd ed.) I came across the following presentation:
[To implement abstractions, the] compiler ...
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46 views
Little Endian vs Big Endian?
Suppose a processor uses the big endian representation and x is a 32-bit integer stored in memory starting at the memory address 1000. The memory is byte-addressable, each location holding a byte. ...
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1answer
50 views
What is memory model in computer organization?
I'm new to Computer Organization and even to this community. I didn't find anything which was simple, clear and up to the point. Any examples supporting the discussion is appreciated. I'm not looking ...
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182 views
Is automata concept theorized in computer science and what would be a simple example?
I understand the terms automata or automaton to mean "self operating machine".
I can't think of any such "machine" besides maybe (if it is even a machine and even exits) cyclic universe of a big-bang-...
1
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1answer
54 views
Is it common in the literature to define regular languages and serialization languages as programming languages?
Often when I create programs I use operating-programming language such as Bash for automating OS operations, structure ("markup") language such as HTML to define structures, styling language such as ...
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3answers
145 views
Are regular languages and their regular expressions part of computer science?
I am trying to understand if regular languages and their regular expressions are concepts of computer science in general and if these are discovered, or invented, by computer scientists, in particular....
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1answer
25 views
Are event and mode well defined terms in CS literature?
From my experience in programming small imperative scrips for personal usage with JavaScript,
I can conclude that an event is "A perceived change in the output of a system" (such as clicking a link ...
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6answers
360 views
Essential difference between Assembly languages to all other programming languages
I understand that any assembly programming language has so little abstraction, so that one who programms with it (OS creator, hardware driver creator, "hacker" and so on), would have to know the ...
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77 views
Is “Extended Church-Turing Thesis” the same as “Cobham-Edmonds Thesis”?
I have been looking for any reference regarding the term: "Extended Church-Turing Thesis" [some people will call it, Strong Church–Turing Thesis]? Does anyone defined it or it is just people in ...
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2answers
124 views
Is program coding part of computer science?
As an amateur Bash/JavaScript scripter I was wondering if program coding ("writing source code") in general, and abstractless coding in particular (binary) is a concept of Computer Science or just an ...
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0answers
33 views
Is 'the bombe' technically a computer?what is technically meant to be a computer?
Some say that 'the bombe' created by Alan Turing is technically not a computer despite decrypting the codes.
Why is it so? Is 'the bombe' technically a computer?
First of all what is technically ...
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0answers
13 views
Is an error-correcting code where the parity symbols are interleaved with the data symbols considered systematic?
According to the Wikipedia entry, a systematic code is one
in which the input data is embedded in the encoded output. Conversely, in a non-systematic code the output does not contain the input ...
3
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1answer
63 views
Difference between ⫾ (U+2AFE) and ⫿ (U+2AFF) in the context of Dijkstra's Guarded Command Language?
Continuing https://tex.stackexchange.com/questions/435986/how-to-draw-the-box-of-dijkstras-guarded-command-language, what is the difference in the intended usage of ⫾ (Dijkstra choice, U+2AFE) and ⫿ (...
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17 views
Why did Wegman-Carter call their class of hash functions as universal on their seminal paper
Wegman-Carter on their seminal Universal classes of hash functions uses the term universal for their definition. They gave this definition as:
Let $H$ be a class of functions from $A$ to $B$. We ...
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1answer
20 views
Distributed algorithm can be executed in a single process
Looking at a "Distributed" algorithm from a textbook on distributed algorithms (e.g. Building a spanning tree, Broadcast/Convergecast.) I found that one can implement it using Golang's concurrency ...
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2answers
34 views
Is there a concept called “white waveforms” in computer science?
It sounds like the lecturer is speaking
If you for example want to play a
music file, mp3 file, well you know, given
that you've taken a programming course
before, all right? How would you do ...
2
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2answers
63 views
Typesetting LTL in Unicode?
Unicode has an abundance of open circles, diamonds and boxes. Using these, we can typeset linear-time temporal logic formulas such as
$$
(\mathop{⬦}ψ)\ \,\land\ \,\mathop{⬦}(θ\ \mathsf{U}\ \mathop{◻}\...
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2answers
56 views
What does “prime” mean in this context?
In a lecture video the instructor introduced the quadratic probing method for hash tables. The formula he gave was the following:
$h(k,i) = (h'(k) + c_1 + c_2i^2)$ $\% M$
where $h'$ was h "prime". ...
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0answers
28 views
Is it still called “recursion” when you're using call-stack as a stack?
The most obvious way to solve a problem of balancing parentheses, like https://leetcode.com/problems/valid-parentheses/, is through a stack (a last-in-first-out (LIFO) datastructure).
However, if you ...
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0answers
34 views
General term for upcasting and downcasting?
Is there a more precise term than simply "casting"? "Casting" often includes for example integer -> float or ...
0
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1answer
105 views
Least Significant Bit (LSB) vs Little Endian - Are they equivalent in anyway!
For a multiple choice question: What do we call the LSB?
(i)Little Endian (ii)Upper bit (iii)Big Endian (iv)Lower Bit
I feel ideally none of them is a true correct choice, but my best bet was (...
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79 views
What is difference between r, and r(R) in DBMS?
Sorry, for asking such a basic question.
I am really confused between small 'r' and 'r(R)' being interchangeably denoted as 'relation' or 'relational instance'. I know, that R is a relational schema. ...
3
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1answer
27 views
Hardness of approximation statement clarification?
In the paper I'm reading, there is a hardness of approximation result for an algorithm proved using a reduction to set cover. Roughly, the claim states that if there existed an algorithm that solved ...
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2answers
23 views
Algorithm for producing array of objects according to the given distribution
I have a set of objects, and each object has (let's say) a color. Given a distribution such as:
...
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0answers
77 views
Does the Hack computer from “The Elements of Computing Systems” use Von Neumann architecture?
I'm reading "The Elements of Computing Systems" (subtitled "Building a Modern Computer from First Principles - Nand to Tetris Companion) by Noam Nisan and Shimon Schocken.
Chapter 4 is about machine ...
3
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2answers
88 views
What is the name of the operator that translates from $X\rightarrow(Y\rightarrow Z)$ to $Y\rightarrow(X\rightarrow Z)$?
Is there a standard name for the operator that takes a function $f:X\rightarrow(Y\rightarrow Z)$ and returns the function $f':Y\rightarrow(X\rightarrow Z)$ that satisfies, for every $y \in Y$ and $x \...
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1answer
39 views
Terminology: Difference between decision variables, features and attributes?
Could there be a difference between the words "feature", "attribute", and "decision variable" when used in the same paper? The one I am specifically thinking about is about an optimization method for ...
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12 views
How to detect a consensus is BFT or not?
Can we divide consensus algorithms into BFT (Byzantine Fault
Tolerant) and non-BFT ?
If so, How to detect a consensus is BFT or non-BFT ?
Is there any non-BFT consensus algorithm example ?
4
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1answer
82 views
Term for a graph decomposition based on a maximum matching
Let $M$ be a maximum cardinality matching in a bipartite graph $G(X+Y,E)$. Let $X_0$ be the subset of $X$ unmatched by $M$. Define the following sequence:
$Y_1 = $ the neighbors of $X_0$ using edges ...
0
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1answer
131 views
What does it mean for a TM to solve a problem?
When we say a TM solves a problem, what does this mean?
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1answer
93 views
Confusion with first condition of Chomsky Normal Form
I had a very quick question when it comes to CFG (more specifically the attributes of CNF). I've been browsing over some examples and I've come across a few that confuse me. One such example is this:
...
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2answers
57 views
What does exactly theoretical computer science entail? [closed]
I am confused by the term "theoretical computer science". How can I distinguish which part of computer science are considered "theoretical" and which not?
To expand further, take Machine Learning. Is ...
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0answers
13 views
How translation, transcription and annotation are related?
From a linguistic point of view, translation, transcription and annotation are three specific terms that introduce some (different) meanings.
However, when it comes to the application, it seems that ...
1
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1answer
27 views
How to put elements in allowed bags?
Let's say I have a list of "Items"
I also have a list of "Bags". Each bag is a set of "Items" which gives what item can be placed in that bag. But only one item can go in each bag.
I want to place ...
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1answer
30 views
What is the specific name for basic data types?
What is the specific name for data types such as integer, string, real (the basic ones)?
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35 views
What does “bounded above” mean in Family of Bachmann–Landau notations?
Per wiki
|f| is bounded above by g (up to constant factor) asymptotically
with this concrete example,
$$f(n) = \log n$$
$$g(n) = n^c = n^{0.000001}$$
Does "bounded above (up to constant factor)...
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2answers
2k views
Are “of the order of n” and “Big O” the same thing?
I am learning from the MIT course Introduction to Algorithms.
The professor says:
Now, remember $\Theta(n)$ is essentially something
that says "of the order of $n$".
What does "of the order ...
1
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1answer
54 views
If an array is full of the same integer, like 0s or 1s, are they all the peak of the array?
I am learning the MIT course Introduction to Algorithms.
The professor is saying
In particular, as an example, position 2 is a peak if, and only if, b
greater than or equal to a, and b greater ...
1
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3answers
94 views
What should I call algorithms with non-linear non-constant time?
I am writing a paper in which I want to refer to a group of algorithms. Some of these algorithms are of complexity O(NlogN), and some of the are more complex (e.g ...
