A new, extremely fast sorting algorithm has been created for GPUs (CUDA-capable only) by researchers at the University of Virginia. This new algorithm is capable of sorting at a rate of one billion (integer) keys per second using a GPU. Normally CPUs aren’t as efficient as CPUs for these types of algorithms (for sorting), but [...]

There has been a LOT of debate as of late regarding Vinay Deolalikar’s P != NP research paper. I’m not going to lie, I don’t understand very many of the concepts described in his P!= NP paper (released August 6, 2010). I’m still learning many of the theoretical Computer Science concepts, but I found many [...]

There are only a small handful number of operating systems dominant in today’s computing world. Systems software has been stagnant for nearly the past two decades. A good example mentioned in the source article mentions the excitement behind the Linux operating system. It’s true that there is much excitement and commitment for Linux, but did [...]

Originally algorithms were designed to process a single item at a time in sequential order. However, modern computer hardware is able to process multiple pieces of data at the same time in parallel. This leads to Parallel and Distributed Computing algorithms for solving more complex problems efficiently. I came across an interesting webpage which gives [...]

Online games can create a ton of complex data. But it can be a gold mine for design ideas, at least according to the article over at newscientist.com. In this article they talk about data mining online gaming data, with hopes of reaping the rewards of new ideas based on user behavior. The researchers are [...]

First, we should start off by explaining what a Turing Machine is. A Turing Machine is a theoretical machine that manipulates symbols on a tape. This machine is simple but easily adaptable. It is able to simulate the logic of any algorithm and is especially useful at explaining how a CPU functions. The machine is [...]

As a relative newcomer to a Computer Science M.Sc. program I have trying to do a lot of reading and understanding outside of the assigned coursework and information from the university. It seems to be difficult at times to understand and digest some of the information out there. Much of it is really complex and [...]

GNU Grep has been around for decades. This is a common *nix tool for searching named input files for lines containing a match to a given pattern. The original author, Mike Haertel, has a post on the FreeBSD mailing list describing why its so far compared to the BSD implementation of Grep. There are a [...]

“Computer science (CS) spans the range from theory through programming to cutting-edge development of computing solutions. Computer science offers a foundation that permits graduates to adapt to new technologies and new ideas. The work of computer scientists falls into three categories: a) designing and building software; b) developing effective ways to solve computing problems, such [...]

“Lyric Semiconductor has unveiled a new type of chip that uses probability inputs and outputs instead of the conventional 1′s and 0′s used in logic chips today. Crunching probabilities is much more applicable to many computing task performed today rather than binary logic…” Read more at: physorg.com