Computer Science Definition/Meaning:
The study of computers, their underlying principles and use. It
comprises topics such as: programming, information structures;
software engineering; programming languages; compilers and operating
systems; hardware design and testing; computer system architecture;
computer networks and interfacing; systems analysis and design;
theories of information, systems, and computation; applicable
mathematics and electronics; computing techniques (e.g. graphics,
simulation, artificial intelligence techniques); applications;
social, economic, organizational, political. legal, and historical
aspects of computing,
It is not a science in the strict sense of being a discipline
employing scientific method to explain phenomena in nature or
society (though it has connections with physics, psychology, and
behavioral science), but rather in the looser sense of being a
systematic body of knowledge with a foundation of theory. Since
however it is ultimately concerned with practical problems
concerning the design and construction of useful systems, within
constraints of cost and acceptability, it is far more a branch of
engineering than it is a science.
Note that other branches of engineering have their theoretical
foundations in separately named disciplines such as physics or
chemistry; computer science, on the other hand, embraces both
theoretical foundations and practical engineering. This idea that
engineering can apply to the design and construction of mostly
abstract (software) systems is new, and one that is not yet widely
accepted.
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