Great Theoretical Ideas in Computer Science

e progressively developed an abstract vocabulary with which to mathematically represent their world. In other words, by computing in abstract models, they could describe and predict patterns in the world around them. Starting with ancient algorithms for arithmetic, we will revisit the development of mathematics from a computational point of view. Conversely, we will mathematically study the nature of computation itself. What is computable, in principle? What is especially easy, or especially hard to compute? To what extent does the inherent nature of computation shape how we learn and think about the world?