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Re: high-school presentation, suggestions?

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Stefan Ram <ram@zedat.fu-berlin.de> wrote:
>kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) wrote or quoted:
>>I explained to the CIO of a large government agency that a particular
>>system wasn't a computer at all because it wasn't a finite automaton,
>
>  What is a computer?

It's a finite automaton.

>  Is this your own definition, or did you quote it from someone else?

I like to quote from Andrew Tennanbaum's book on the subject.

>  Are there any other definitions?

I suppose there are, since there are people whose job title is "computer"
and we do have devices like the B-29 fire control computer which compute
but are not actually finite automata.

Our computer security people wanted us to put encryption software on E-6B
slide rules because they were on the inventory as "portable computers."

>  How do you know which definition to choose as the correct one?

I think in the 21st century, everyone assumes a computer to be a finite
automaton or something mathematically equivalent.  That is, turing-machine-
equivalent except for having a finite length tape.
--scott
-- 
"C'est un Nagra. C'est suisse, et tres, tres precis."

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high-school presentation, suggestions? Johanne Fairchild <jfairchild@tudado.org> - 2024-03-21 14:57 -0300
  Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? John <john@building-m.simplistic-anti-spam-measure.net> - 2024-03-21 19:34 +0000
    Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? John <john@building-m.simplistic-anti-spam-measure.net> - 2024-03-21 19:38 +0000
      Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? D <nospam@example.net> - 2024-03-21 21:59 +0100
  Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) - 2024-03-23 20:30 +0000
    Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? Johanne Fairchild <jfairchild@tudado.org> - 2024-03-23 19:57 -0300
    Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) - 2024-03-24 01:49 +0000
      Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) - 2024-03-24 16:50 +0000
      Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? Spiros Bousbouras <spibou@gmail.com> - 2024-03-24 17:25 +0000
        Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? kludge@panix.com (Scott Dorsey) - 2024-03-24 17:57 +0000
          Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? Rich <rich@example.invalid> - 2024-03-24 19:32 +0000
        Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? Rich <rich@example.invalid> - 2024-03-24 19:28 +0000
        Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? Spiros Bousbouras <spibou@gmail.com> - 2024-03-27 12:37 +0000
          Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? Anton Shepelev <anton.txt@g{oogle}mail.com> - 2024-03-27 16:33 +0300
      Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? Lawrence D'Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> - 2024-03-31 01:46 +0000
  Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? Lawrence D'Oliveiro <ldo@nz.invalid> - 2024-03-26 23:00 +0000
    Re: high-school presentation, suggestions? candycanearter07 <candycanearter07@candycanearter07.nomail.afraid> - 2024-03-27 14:50 +0000

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