An Active Learning Approach to Teaching the Main Ideas in Computing Explorations in Computing: An Introduction to Computer Science and Python Programming teaches computer science students how to use programming skills to explore fundamental concepts and computational approaches to solving problems. Tbook gives beginning students an introduction to

Computer science studies how to describe, predict properties of, and efficiently implement information processes. This book introduces the most important ideas in computing using the Scheme and Python programming languages. It focuses on how to describe information processes by defining procedures, how to analyze the costs required to carry out a procedure, and the fundamental limits of what can and cannot be computed mechanically.

By the year 2020, the basic memory components of a computer will be the size of individual atoms. At such scales, the current theory of computation will become invalid. "Quantum computing" is reinventing the foundations of computer science and information theory in a way that is consistent with quantum physics - the most accurate model of reality currently known. Remarkably, this theory predicts that quantum computers can perform certain tasks breathtakingly faster than classical computers – and, better yet, can accomplish mind-boggling feats such as teleporting information, breaking supposedly "unbreakable" codes, generating true random numbers, and communicating with messages that betray the presence of eavesdropping. This widely anticipated second edition of Explorations in Quantum Computing explains these burgeoning developments in simple terms, and describes the key technological hurdles that must be overcome to make quantum computers a reality. This easy-to-read, time-tested, and comprehensive textbook provides a fresh perspective on the capabilities of quantum computers, and supplies readers with the tools necessary to make their own foray into this exciting field. Topics and features: concludes each chapter with exercises and a summary of the material covered; provides an introduction to the basic mathematical formalism of quantum computing, and the quantum effects that can be harnessed for non-classical computation; discusses the concepts of quantum gates, entangling power, quantum circuits, quantum Fourier, wavelet, and cosine transforms, and quantum universality, computability, and complexity; examines the potential applications of quantum computers in areas such as search, code-breaking, solving NP-Complete problems, quantum simulation, quantum chemistry, and mathematics; investigates the uses of quantum information, including quantum teleportation, superdense coding, quantum data compression, quantum cloning, quantum negation, and quantum cryptography; reviews the advancements made towards practical quantum computers, covering developments in quantum error correction and avoidance, and alternative models of quantum computation. This text/reference is ideal for anyone wishing to learn more about this incredible, perhaps "ultimate," computer revolution. Dr. Colin P. Williams is Program Manager for Advanced Computing Paradigms at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, and CEO of Xtreme Energetics, Inc. an advanced solar energy company. Dr. Williams has taught quantum computing and quantum information theory as an acting Associate Professor of Computer Science at Stanford University. He has spent over a decade inspiring and leading high technology teams and building business relationships with and Silicon Valley companies. Today his interests include terrestrial and Space-based power generation, quantum computing, cognitive computing, computational material design, visualization, artificial intelligence, evolutionary computing, and remote olfaction. He was formerly a Research Scientist at Xerox PARC and a Research Assistant to Prof. Stephen W. Hawking, Cambridge University.

This book addresses how computers affect people's everyday lives. Using actual situations and problems that people have encountered with current software applications, this book offers academics ways to examine how new situations are created through computer use. It contains some of the very first papers on very important topics including the AEGIS disaster, the intriguing new world of MUD environments, and community networks, including a study of Community Memory in Berkeley, possibly the world's first community computer system. The first half contains critical studies, in which the authors explain ways of describing real situations where people are already using computers. This situations are often problematic and much more complicated than the scenarios that the designers envisioned when designing the system. The second half of the book contains constructive studies, reporting experiences in trying to build systems in new ways, with a fully developed consciousness of what people need and the interactions between computer systems and social systems.

Lively essays exploring topics from digital logic and machine language to artificial intelligence and searching the World Wide Web.

Programming Language Explorations helps its readers gain proficiency in programming language practice and theory by presenting both example-focused, chapter-length explorations of fourteen important programming languages and detailed discussions of the major concepts transcending multiple languages. A language-by-language approach is sandwiched between an introductory chapter that motivates and lays out the major concepts of the field and a final chapter that brings together all that was learned in the middle chapters into a coherent and organized view of the field. Each of the featured languages in the middle chapters is introduced with a common trio of example programs and followed by a tour of its basic language features and coverage of interesting aspects from its type system, functional forms, scoping rules, concurrency patterns, and metaprogramming facilities. These chapters are followed by a brief tour of over 40 additional languages designed to enhance the reader’s appreciation of the breadth of the programming language landscape and to motivate further study. Targeted to both professionals and advanced college undergraduates looking to expand the range of languages and programming patterns they can apply in their work and studies, the book pays attention to modern programming practices, keeps a focus on cutting-edge programming patterns, and provides many runnable examples, all of which are available in the book’s companion GitHub repository. The combination of conceptual overviews with exploratory example-focused coverage of individual programming languages provides its readers with the foundation for more effectively authoring programs, prompting AI programming assistants, and, perhaps most importantly, learning—and creating—new languages.

Programming Language Explorations is a tour of several modern programming languages in use today. The book teaches fundamental language concepts using a language-by-language approach. As each language is presented, the authors introduce new concepts as they appear, and revisit familiar ones, comparing their implementation with those from languages seen in prior chapters. The goal is to present and explain common theoretical concepts of language design and usage, illustrated in the context of practical language overviews. Twelve languages have been carefully chosen to illustrate a wide range of programming styles and paradigms. The book introduces each language with a common trio of example programs, and continues with a brief tour of its basic elements, type system, functional forms, scoping rules, concurrency patterns, and sometimes, metaprogramming facilities. Each language chapter ends with a summary, pointers to open source projects, references to materials for further study, and a collection of exercises, designed as further explorations. Following the twelve featured language chapters, the authors provide a brief tour of over two dozen additional languages, and a summary chapter bringing together many of the questions explored throughout the text. Targeted to both professionals and advanced college undergraduates looking to expand the range of languages and programming patterns they can apply in their work and studies, the book pays attention to modern programming practice, covers cutting-edge languages and patterns, and provides many runnable examples, all of which can be found in an online GitHub repository. The exploration style places this book between a tutorial and a reference, with a focus on the concepts and practices underlying programming language design and usage. Instructors looking for material to supplement a programming languages or software engineering course may find the approach unconventional, but hopefully, a lot more fun.