Computability

/ˌkɒmpjuːtəˈbɪlɪti/ noun

Definition

The quality or state of being able to be computed, calculated, or determined by a computer or mathematical process.

Etymology

From 'computable' + noun-forming suffix '-ity'. 'Computable' derives from Latin 'computare' (to calculate). The term became prominent in 20th-century mathematical logic and computer science.

Kelly Says

Turing's fundamental question was about computability—can this problem *in principle* be solved by a machine? This concept revealed that some mathematical questions are provably uncomputable, revealing actual limits to what logic and machines can do.

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