What is Computing: Definition and 730 Discussions

Computing is any goal-oriented activity requiring, benefiting from, or creating computing machinery. It includes the study and experimentation of algorithmic processes and development of both hardware and software. It has scientific, engineering, mathematical, technological and social aspects. Major computing disciplines include computer engineering, computer science, cybersecurity, data science, information systems, information technology and software engineering.

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  1. P

    Computing end-digits of large factorials

    The factorial of 1 trillion ends in many trailing zeros. Find the five digits that comes before the trailing zeros. I know how to calculate the number of trailing zeros, but don't know what to do afterwards. This is a computational problem.
  2. P

    PLC programmin relevant to circuits/digital computing?

    Hello I am a senior EE student who just got an internship for a Control Systems Engineer position. The position's main task is PLC programming. However, I would like to ultimately go into computer hardware using technologies such as VHDL, Labview, Verilog, etc. I don't know much about PLC...
  3. R

    Error computing total derivative

    find the total derivative dz/dt, given: z=(x^2)-8xy-(y^3) where x=3t and y=1-t my steps look like this, can someone point out where i am going wrong, please? z'=2x-8(x'y+y'x)-3y^2 where x'=3 and y'=-1 2(3t)-8[3(1-t)+(-1)(3t)]-3(1-t)^2 =6t-8[3-3t+(-3t)]-3(1-2t+t^2) =6t-8(3-6t)-3(1-2t+t^2)...
  4. M

    Is Parallel Computing Essential Beyond Science and Graphics?

    Hi, I'm curious what is a general view on parallel computing? Is it something that's important only for science and computer graphics professionals or does it also have applications in business, etc. Are there any particular skills in parallel computing that employers are looking for, any...
  5. V

    Courses Does Physics course teach basic computing skills?

    At university of Toronto, do certain physics courses teach computer programmings? or do I need to take extra course for computer Not that I don't want to take it but I think I will have full course for both 1st year uni even without the computer courses. I think it is important to learn...
  6. V

    Computing operator in bra-ket within momentum space

    Homework Statement <e^{ip'x}|x^{2}|e^{ipx}> Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution Its pretty obvious that its difficult to integrate in position-space, so I rewrite x in momentum space (i.e. the second-order differential operator with respect to p). If that is...
  7. H

    Computing a Limit + Justification

    Homework Statement find the limit of \sqrt{x^2+x}-\sqrt{x^2-x} as x approaches infinity Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution Multiplying the original expression by \frac{sqrt(x^2+x)+sqrt(x^2-x)}{sqrt(x^2+x)+sqrt(x^2-x)} I get the following...
  8. D

    What background is needed for research in quantum computing?

    Hey all, I'm an undergraduate physics major, thinking about what I want to study in graduate school. Lately, I've been extremely interested in the field of quantum computing. However, I'm not sure what the best background is to do research in this field. Is is physics? Computer science...
  9. M

    Computing Mass Displacement for Motion Capture Sequence, fail.

    Hello! Homework Statement As the title says I am attempting to calculate the mass displacement of a motion capture sequence, however I am not seeing the results I expect which is why I am posting here to make sure I have understood everything correctly. The data that is known is the...
  10. S

    Calculating Break Adherence for Employees with Multiple Breaks

    hi math wizards, a simple problem i have...work time is 8.5 hours while paid break is 1.25...paid break is divided into 3 parts 0.5, 0.25 and 0.5...any body knows how to compute the adherance to this? the goal of this problem is to compute the break adherance of an employee. An employee has 3...
  11. F

    Computing Electric Field From The Potential

    Hi all. I'm having a very hard time understanding this portion of Physics so please bear with me. The furthest I got with this problem is deciding to use the sum of the potentials at each point to calculate the potential of the system. Something like... \frac{kq_{1}}{r_{1}} +...
  12. T

    Confused about notation for computing gradients

    Homework Statement Consider scalar functions u = u(x). Compute the gradients ∇u for: u(x) = (x, y, z) u(x) = (y, z, x) u(x) = (x^2y, 10, z + x) Homework Equations This is a question on my homework for undergraduate Fluid Mechanics. The teacher has been assigning math problems in topics...
  13. T

    Visual basic algorithm for computing hermite polynomials

    Please I need Visual Basic algorithm for computing Hermite polynomials. Any one with useful info? Thanks.
  14. P

    Dl (dot) r hat in computing potential?

    dl (dot) r hat in computing potential?? when computing the line integral "from infinity" back toward charge, the direction is pointing to the circle. But r hat is pointing away from circle. So vector dl should equal magnitude dl times negative r hat, which would change sign of potential...?
  15. D

    Errors in computing the Crank-Nicolson Method

    Hi all! Having decided to return to coding some of the physical problems that I require solving(in lieu say, of Mathematica), I endeavored to adapt the Crank-Nicolson to my needs, but, in order to test my algorithm, I had first attempted to resolve the common and trivial heat equation, in one...
  16. D

    Gravitational Force computing for components

    Homework Statement there are four particles A(0,0) B(10,10) C(0,15) D(0,5) with masses of MassA=5kg MassB=10kg MassC=20kg MassD=25kg Questions: a)total force acting on A. b)total force acting on C. Homework Equations F=Gm1m2/r^2 The Attempt at a Solution
  17. K

    Methods for computing partial-costs of product bundles?

    This might go into stats, I'm not sure. But I'll throw it out there. You are at the grocery store and they have two product bundles: Four bananas and three limes for $10. Two grapefruits and five limes for $12. You want to come up with a way to compute the average cost of a lime, the...
  18. R

    Computing magnitude and location of resultant parabolic loading

    Homework Statement Compute the magnitude and location of the resultant of the parabolic loading shown in the figure below. The slope of the parabola is zero at the origin. See figure: http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/819/prob6.jpg/ Homework Equations The Attempt at a...
  19. edpell

    What is Lockheed Martin's goal for their quantum computing investment?

    I have heard the phrase quantum computing my question is what is it? Thanks.
  20. X

    Fortran [Fortran] How to do I/O jobs and computing jobs at the same time

    It takes a lot of time for my Fortran program to do I/O jobs. Is there any way to do I/O jobs while at the same time it is doing computing jobs? To do I/O jobs and computing jobs at the same time would save a lot of time. Thanks.
  21. V

    Computing distance and time from a differential equation

    hello, having given 2 speeds v1 and v2 and the equation: k1*v'=k2-k3*v^{2} how do i compute the distance traveled from v1 reaching v2 and the time needed. (k1,k2,k3 are constants). i think i have to integrate to find the distance, but i just can't figure quite how to do it. any tips...
  22. Orion1

    P2P cloud computing GPU simulation

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5qyhLAsVxlU I have been considering a concept that is beyond my technical qualifications. I want to start development of a software project that is based upon some convergent concepts, and I am requesting collaboration in writing a scientific paper on the...
  23. D

    Studying Scopes for studying Computing after M.Sc. in Physics

    Hi, I am doing masters in Physics. For few days i am studying a book on microprocessor and it catch my interest. I'm now really curious about the whole world of computing. I'v decided to study farther on computing (may b quantum computing,robotics,etc) rather than general physics. Please...
  24. T

    How to Get Into Quantum Computing?

    Hello everyone, I'm from Toronto in CANADA and I am going into grade 12 this September. I figured that it's time to figure out what I want to do with my life and how to achieve it. So I've been debating between research/building a quantum computer, working on teleportation (far-fetched I...
  25. G

    Is Cloud Computing Right for Me? A Skeptic's Guide

    http://www.physicspost.com/articles.php?articleId=245" I'm really hesitant about jumping on the cloud computing bandwagon. There's something about it that makes me uneasy. Am I being a curmudgeon for wanting to have complete control of my data? FYI: We back up our data twice each day onto...
  26. F

    Electrostatics: Computing net charge on a specific surface using multiple tests

    An interesting electrostatics puzzle! This is a simplification of a real problem I've been hurting my brain on. Luckily the simplification is a fun challenge in its own right. Homework Statement There is a 3D rectangular solid object in space. Each face of the solid is a perfect...
  27. Pythagorean

    MATLAB Computing with random generators (MATLAB)

    So I ran an ODE solver with an additional, random (using randn) injected input. Then I took the same ODE solver and the same random line, and multiplied it by 5, so now I have (5*randn). The runtime is already ten times as long (and still not finished). Why does it take so much longer to...
  28. G

    What is the Best Object-Oriented Language for Scientific Computing?

    I'm in my first year of theoretical physics master and I'm considering of following the path of scientific simulations. At the moment I use C for my simulations. I would additionally like to learn an object oriented language. I followed a course in Java about 2 years ago, so that would be easier...
  29. N

    Computing Floquet transition matrix

    hi , I need to create a program on mathématica 8 to study the stability of my system using Floquet transition matrix . to compute the Floquet transition matrix I made this program based on a fourth order Runge Kutta integration : X1[t_] = {x1[t], x2[t], x3[t], x4[t], x5[t], x6[t] ...
  30. M

    Computing the halo mass function and the SFH

    Hi, I have a catalog of dark matter halos, which consists of their COM positions and their masses. I need to determine the halo mass function. How can I do? I mean, it is easy to plot the number of halos between mass M and M+dM, but how can I have information on the volume? I don't get it...
  31. S

    Computing the projection of a 3-D volume

    I am trying to project a voxelized cube. I have created a cube of size 255x255x255 with intensity values one. I have derived the perspective transformation matrix and constructed the projection-matrix. I have implemented the projection of a cube using voxel-driven projection algorithm in...
  32. E

    Computing Copper Loss: Examples & Reduction Strategies

    Good day. just want to ask anyone about copper loss. How is it computed for example in a manufacturing plant or in a dept mall.Could anyone give an illustration/example? Also , is it true that copper loss can be reduced by using big wires?What if the wire is big enough? thank you. hope...
  33. P

    Comparing Benefits of Excel for High Performance Computing and Analysis

    Hey Everyone! I'm looking for a good tool to do some high performance computing and analysis for my research. I've been going back and forth about using Excel as my primary tool as it is pretty straight forward so that I can share my data and results with others. Does anyone have any thought...
  34. D

    Quantum Computing: Recent Developments and Resources

    More recent book than Nielsen and Chuang "Quantum Computation and Quantum Informaion" For this famous book, I discovered too late that there are no References more recent than 2000. Do you know of a textbook that covers more recent developments in Quantum Computing? Thanks Don Parsons
  35. B

    How to Compute Poisson Ratio Correctly?

    question A ciclindrical metal specimen 10 mm in diameter is stressed elastically in tension. A force of 15000 N produces a reduction in diameter of 0.007 mm. Compute Poisson ratio if its elastic modulus is 100 GPa my attempt D original = 0.01m change in D = 0.000007m F=15000N E=...
  36. B

    Questions about quantum computing

    I am a high school senior and am currently writing a research paper on the effects of future information processing. I would like to ask anyone here somewhat knowledgeable with physics/engineering their opinions for me to cite in my paper. We are required to have 3 primary sources, and I would...
  37. W

    Computing a permuation from its number

    I'm writing a program that generates every possible valid Mastermind code. That itself is easy. There are 6 colors in 4 possible positions. Cycling through them all is done like so: for(int i = 0 to 1295 ) { // 1295 == 6^4 - 1, there are 1296 possible permutations of colors color1 = (...
  38. P

    Probability Density (and computing constant K)

    Homework Statement The random variable X has the probability density f(x) defined by: f(x) = ke(-|x|) Compute the constant k, then find the probability density of Y=X2 Homework Equations The Attempt at a Solution I'm completely stumped by this question. I know I need to...
  39. J

    Computing In AE Graduate School

    I'll be concentrating in/researching aerodynamics and CFD. Will I be doing the programming/mesh generation/code execution (or any other intensive computing) on my own computer or the department's super computer/workstations? I had a powerful desktop in ME undergrad and frankly it wasn't really...
  40. C

    Computing Line Integrals Related to Vector Field F in R2

    We are given a vector field: F=\frac{-y}{x^2+y^2} , \frac{x}{x^2+y^2} Then asked if F is conservative on R2 \ (0,0). I just solved the partial derivatives of each part of the vector field and they did indeed equal each other, but I don't under stand what the "\(0,0)" part means. We are then...
  41. J

    Computing Natural Logarithm of 2

    I got this question and I know a bit on how to start it, but not sure which direction is best: By considering the power series 1/(1 + x) and 1/(1 - x) show that: so I do the differentiation - ln(1 + x) = x0 du/1 + u = x - x2/2 + x3/3 - x4/4 ... which equals - = sigma (upper infinity and...
  42. T

    Will AI Destroy Humanity: The Future of Home Computing?

    Any thoughts on what home computing will be like in 50 years? How about 100 years. Real time Google Earth for sure. Much more mind to computer interface. We might put something like a headset on that would read brain info. Artificial intelligence? Here's a quote from another post here-...
  43. Simfish

    Resources for Data Science, Statistical Analysis, ML & Scientific Computing

    http://www.quora.com/How-do-I-become-a-data-scientist Huge collections of resources can be found at http://www.quora.com/Alex-Kamil/answers (you can edit them too) For example, http://www.quora.com/What-are-some-good-resources-for-learning-about-distributed-computing...
  44. P

    Really stuck computing orthogonal complement?

    Really stuck... computing orthogonal complement? Homework Statement The Attempt at a Solution :cry: I'm really sorry I can't provide much here because I really don't know how to proceed. Could anyone offer a hint to get me started?
  45. V

    Fixing Computer Problems: MSN & Desktop Backgrounds

    General computing ? On my computer the internet connection has been down for 3 months and now its been fixed I can't sign into MSN and I can't set a desk top back ground either. Does anyone know how I can sort these problems out??
  46. J

    Computing Series with Residues

    Homework Statement It is a not a particular problem. Just how does one handle the situation of computing sums with residues if the residue comes out purely imaginary, as ultimately the sum must be real? Homework Equations sum(f(k), negative infinity, positive...
  47. Demon117

    Computing the derivative of an inverse matrix

    Homework Statement If A, B are elements of Mat(n, R) and A is invertible, compute \frac{d}{dt}_{t=0}(A+tB)^{-1} The Attempt at a Solution The derivative will be of the form \frac{d}{dt}(A+tB)^{-1}=-(A+tB)^{-1}\frac{d}{dt}((A+tB))(A+tB)^{-1} but I need to evaluate this at t=0...
  48. S

    Efficiently Computing Conjugacy Classes in GL(n,Fp)

    Homework Statement As the title says, I'm trying to find an efficient algorithm in order to write a program for computing conjugacy classes in subgroups of the general linear group GL(n,\mathbb{F}_p) (n x n matrices over a finite field of p elements, p prime) efficiently. In particular, I am...
  49. J

    Washer vs cylindrical shell method for computing volumes

    Hello, Homework Statement My problem regards the disk|washer, and cylindrical shell methods for finding volumes in single variable calc. My problem is basically am I understanding these two methods and their relationships properly. Fundamentally, these methods are indentical, as we can...
  50. J

    Mobius strip computing unit normal field at 2 points

    Homework Statement I am given this parametrization of the mobius band: F(s,t) = (cos(t)+s*cos(t)*cos(t/2), sin(t)+s*sin(t)*cos(t/2), s*sin(t/2)) Let F1 be F restricted to (0,2*pi) X (-1,1). Let F2 be F restricted to (-pi,pi) X (-1,1). let N1 be the unit normal field determined by F1 let...
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