Reading notes for Code Fellows!
Computers are tools created to help with thinking work that are capable of manipulating information. A computer is a computer if it does these four things:
In its most high-level summarization: A computer receives input from some type of device. It then stores that information in its memory. Next it manipulates that information with a list of commands or algorithms and then stores the changed information. Finally it delivers the information to a device for output.
Programmers and computer users do not deal with the 1’s and 0’s of Binary, but inside, that is what the computer is using to accomplish all of the tasks it performs. In binary, a single piece of information can essentially be represented by a 1 or a 0. That smallest piece of information is called a “bit”.
But that tiny piece of information could represent:
| 1 | 0 |
|---|---|
| on | off |
| yes | no |
| true | false |
The more bits available the more complex the pieces of information they represent can become. For instance, 8 wires can represent numbers from 0-255. But with 32 wires, the representable numbers rises to 4,294,967,295!!
Information in the form of text, pictures, video, sound and other types can all be broken down and represented numerically, and therefore can be interpreted as input by a computer. The computer can also numerically generate corresponding output through the proper devices.
Circuits come in many different types. Each one manipulates the binary data in different ways. A simple calculation may take thousands of circuits to complete. Three examples of types of circuits are:
Circuits are used in every operation a computer performs. As circuits become smaller the computers become faster because the electrical impulses of circuits will travel shorter distances.