Calculating SpaceCalculating Space (German: Rechnender Raum) is Konrad Zuse's 1969 book on automata theory. He proposed that all processes in the universe are computational. This view is known today as the simulation hypothesis, digital philosophy, digital physics or pancomputationalism. Zuse proposed that the universe is being computed by some sort of cellular automaton or other discrete computing machinery, challenging the long-held view that some physical laws are continuous by nature.
Edward FredkinEdward Fredkin (October 2, 1934 – June 13, 2023) was an American computer scientist, physicist and businessman who was an early pioneer of digital physics. Fredkin's primary contributions included work on reversible computing and cellular automata. While Konrad Zuse's book, Calculating Space (1969), mentioned the importance of reversible computation, the Fredkin gate represented the essential breakthrough. In more recent work, he used the term digital philosophy (DP).
Information theoryScientific study of digital informationInformation theory is the mathematical study of the quantification, storage, and communication of a particular type of mathematically defined information. The field was established and formalized by Claude Shannon in the 1940s, though early contributions were made in the 1920s through the works of Harry Nyquist and Ralph Hartley.
ComputationA computation is any type of arithmetic or non-arithmetic calculation that is well-defined. Common examples of computation are mathematical equation solving and the execution of computer algorithms. Mechanical or electronic devices (or, historically, people) that perform computations are known as computers. Computer science is an academic field that involves the study of computation.
Konrad ZuseKonrad Ernst Otto Zuse (; German:; 22 June 1910 – 18 December 1995) was a German civil engineer, pioneering computer scientist, inventor and businessman. His greatest achievement was the world's first programmable computer; the functional program-controlled Turing-completeZ3 became operational in May 1941. Thanks to this machine and its predecessors, Zuse is regarded by some as the inventor and father of the modern computer.
UniverseThe universe comprises all of existence: all forms of matter and energy in space and time, and the structures they form, from subatomic particles to entire galactic filaments. Since the early 20th century, the field of cosmology has established that the universe has been expanding for 13.8 billion years, starting from a dense fireball in an event called the Big Bang. The observable portion of the universe is approximately 93 billion light-years in diameter at present.
Digital dataDigital data or digital information, in information theory and information systems, is data or information represented as a string of discrete symbols, each of which can take on one of only a finite number of values from some alphabet, such as letters or digits. An example is a text document, which consists of a string of alphanumeric characters.
Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyPrivate research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a privateresearch university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1861 to advance "useful knowledge", the university has played a significant role in the development of many areas of technology and science. William Barton Rogers founded MIT to accelerate American industrialization through scientific knowledge.
MetaphysicsMetaphysics is the branch of philosophy that examines the basic nature or most fundamental structure of reality. It is traditionally seen as the study of mind-independent features of the world, but some theorists view it as an inquiry into the conceptual framework of human understanding. Some philosophers, including Aristotle, designate metaphysics as the first philosophy to suggest that it is more fundamental than other forms of philosophical inquiry.
Computer programInstructions a computer can executeSource code for a computer program written in the JavaScript language. It demonstrates the appendChild() method. The method adds a new child node to an existing parent node. It is commonly used to dynamically modify the structure of an HTML document.A computer program is a sequence or set of instructions in a programming language for a computer to execute.
PhilosophyStudy of general and fundamental questionsThe statue The Thinker by Auguste Rodin is a symbol of philosophical thought.
ComputerProgrammable machine that processes dataComputers and computing devices from different eras—left to right, top to bottom: Early vacuum-tube computer (ENIAC)Mainframe computer (IBM System/360)Smartphone (LYF Water 2)Desktop computer (IBM ThinkCentre S50 with monitor)Supercomputer (IBM Summit)A computer is a machine that can be programmed to automatically carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (computation).*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.