The Science of Computing

The Science of Computing

Author: Matti Tedre

Publisher: CRC Press

Published: 2014-12-03

Total Pages: 294

ISBN-13: 1482217694

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The identity of computing has been fiercely debated throughout its short history. Why is it still so hard to define computing as an academic discipline? Is computing a scientific, mathematical, or engineering discipline? By describing the mathematical, engineering, and scientific traditions of computing, The Science of Computing: Shaping a Discipline presents a rich picture of computing from the viewpoints of the field’s champions. The book helps readers understand the debates about computing as a discipline. It explains the context of computing’s central debates and portrays a broad perspective of the discipline. The book first looks at computing as a formal, theoretical discipline that is in many ways similar to mathematics, yet different in crucial ways. It traces a number of discussions about the theoretical nature of computing from the field’s intellectual origins in mathematical logic to modern views of the role of theory in computing. The book then explores the debates about computing as an engineering discipline, from the central technical innovations to the birth of the modern technical paradigm of computing to computing’s arrival as a new technical profession to software engineering gradually becoming an academic discipline. It presents arguments for and against the view of computing as engineering within the context of software production and analyzes the clash between the theoretical and practical mindsets. The book concludes with the view of computing as a science in its own right—not just as a tool for other sciences. It covers the early identity debates of computing, various views of computing as a science, and some famous characterizations of the discipline. It also addresses the experimental computer science debate, the view of computing as a natural science, and the algorithmization of sciences.


Office Automation

Office Automation

Author: Don Tapscott

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2013-11-21

Total Pages: 254

ISBN-13: 1461575370

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Every pioneer takes large risks, hoping that the new frontier he seeks will provide the benefits of independence and good fortune. Don Tapscott is such a pioneer in the area of office automation. He has been a true pioneer, having entered the field in its early days and taken the risk of working not in technol ogy, which was fashionable, but in the field of the problems of organizations, which was less fashionable, but in many ways more important. The utilization of computers for data processing, accounting, inventory, and other "bread and butter" applications is now well entrenched in our society and culture. The process of designing such systems tends to focus on the needs of the company and the constraints of the equipment, leading to efficient systems with little tolerance for the variety of people who must use or interface with them. Within the office automation area, these methods do not work nearly as well. The frequency and amount of human interaction in the office environment, and the wide variety of situations and reactions there in, demands a different design methodology.


An Introduction to Ray Tracing

An Introduction to Ray Tracing

Author: Andrew S. Glassner

Publisher: Elsevier

Published: 1989-06-01

Total Pages: 359

ISBN-13: 0080499058

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The creation of ever more realistic 3-D images is central to the development of computer graphics. The ray tracing technique has become one of the most popular and powerful means by which photo-realistic images can now be created. The simplicity, elegance and ease of implementation makes ray tracing an essential part of understanding and exploiting state-of-the-art computer graphics.An Introduction to Ray Tracing develops from fundamental principles to advanced applications, providing "how-to" procedures as well as a detailed understanding of the scientific foundations of ray tracing. It is also richly illustrated with four-color and black-and-white plates. This is a book which will be welcomed by all concerned with modern computer graphics, image processing, and computer-aided design. - Provides practical "how-to" information - Contains high quality color plates of images created using ray tracing techniques - Progresses from a basic understanding to the advanced science and application of ray tracing


Electronic Value Exchange

Electronic Value Exchange

Author: David L. Stearns

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2011-01-04

Total Pages: 261

ISBN-13: 1849961395

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Electronic Value Exchange examines in detail the transformation of the VISA electronic payment system from a collection of non-integrated, localized, paper-based bank credit card programs into the cooperative, global, electronic value exchange network it is today. Topics and features: provides a history of the VISA system from the mid-1960s to the early 1980s; presents a historical narrative based on research gathered from personal documents and interviews with key actors; investigates, for the first time, both the technological and social infrastructures necessary for the VISA system to operate; supplies a detailed case study, highlighting the mutual shaping of technology and social relations, and the influence that earlier information processing practices have on the way firms adopt computers and telecommunications; examines how “gateways” in transactional networks can reinforce or undermine established social boundaries, and reviews the establishment of trust in new payment devices.


The Computer Engineering Handbook

The Computer Engineering Handbook

Author: Vojin G. Oklobdzija

Publisher: CRC Press

Published: 2001-12-26

Total Pages: 1409

ISBN-13: 1420041541

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There is arguably no field in greater need of a comprehensive handbook than computer engineering. The unparalleled rate of technological advancement, the explosion of computer applications, and the now-in-progress migration to a wireless world have made it difficult for engineers to keep up with all the developments in specialties outside their own


Digital Systems and Applications

Digital Systems and Applications

Author: Vojin G. Oklobdzija

Publisher: CRC Press

Published: 2017-12-19

Total Pages: 1775

ISBN-13: 1351838105

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New design architectures in computer systems have surpassed industry expectations. Limits, which were once thought of as fundamental, have now been broken. Digital Systems and Applications details these innovations in systems design as well as cutting-edge applications that are emerging to take advantage of the fields increasingly sophisticated capabilities. This book features new chapters on parallelizing iterative heuristics, stream and wireless processors, and lightweight embedded systems. This fundamental text— Provides a clear focus on computer systems, architecture, and applications Takes a top-level view of system organization before moving on to architectural and organizational concepts such as superscalar and vector processor, VLIW architecture, as well as new trends in multithreading and multiprocessing. includes an entire section dedicated to embedded systems and their applications Discusses topics such as digital signal processing applications, circuit implementation aspects, parallel I/O algorithms, and operating systems Concludes with a look at new and future directions in computing Features articles that describe diverse aspects of computer usage and potentials for use Details implementation and performance-enhancing techniques such as branch prediction, register renaming, and virtual memory Includes a section on new directions in computing and their penetration into many new fields and aspects of our daily lives


Cooperative Work and Coordinative Practices

Cooperative Work and Coordinative Practices

Author: Kjeld Schmidt

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2011-01-27

Total Pages: 471

ISBN-13: 1848000685

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Information technology has been used in organisational settings and for organisational purposes such as accounting, for a half century, but IT is now increasingly being used for the purposes of mediating and regulating complex activities in which multiple professional users are involved, such as in factories, hospitals, architectural offices, and so on. The economic importance of such coordination systems is enormous but their design often inadequate. The problem is that our understanding of the coordinative practices for which these systems are developed is deficient, leaving systems developers and software engineers to base their designs on commonsensical requirements analyses. The research reflected in this book addresses these very problems. It is a collection of articles which establish a conceptual foundation for the research area of Computer-Supported Cooperative Work.


Computer-Generated Images

Computer-Generated Images

Author: Nadia Magnenat-Thalmann

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-12-06

Total Pages: 495

ISBN-13: 4431680330

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Research, development, and applications in computer graphics have dramatically expanded in recent years. Because of decreasing prices, superior hardware is now being used and image quality is better than ever. Many people now require image-synthesis techniques and software for their applicaions. Moreover, the techniques of computer ani mation have become very popular. In this book, we present a wide range of applications of computer graphics. This book is a collection of 44 papers in various areas of computer graphics selected from papers presented at Graphics Interface '85. Graphics Interface '85, held from May 27 to 31 in Montreal, was the first truly international computer graphics conference in Canada. This year, for the first time, the conference was presented jointly by the Com puter Graphics Society and the Canadian Man-Computer Communications Society. This new arrangement gave the conference international scope. The conference was spon sored by the Department of Communications in Ottawa, the Department of Science and Technology in Quebec, Supply and Services Canada, the Natural Sciences and Engineer ing Research Council of Canada, Hydro-Quebec, the "Association Canadienne Fran«aise pour I' Avancement des Sciences", and the Canadian Broadcasting Corpora tion. Graphics Interface '85 was organized by "1'Ecole des Hautes Etudes Commerciales" of the University of Montreal. Over 100 papers were submitted to the conference , but 64 were selected by the inter national program committee for presentation. This book contains new expanded versions of the papers.