The Link Between Math and Computer Science
- Olivia J.
- Oct 16, 2023
- 3 min read
By Olivia Jiang
People often link math to computer science, but you might be wondering: how are they related at all?
Well, the answer is fairly simple but complicated at the same time. These two subjects are indeed strongly linked. Being a student, we are able to learn many different math concepts and types of math in school. Many of these complex mathematical concepts are applied and used in computer science in various ways.
Here are several different math concepts and examples in which how it is applied in computer science:
One example of this is something almost everyone uses regularly to navigate to places they have not been to before, determine their position, monitor movement, or to create maps: a GPS (Global Positioning System). Different features on this application, such as finding the quickest travel path between two locations, as well as figuring out the traffic pattern require application of basic algebra concepts. This, in addition to machine learning, allows these things to be calculated and updated in real time. The combination allows for the app to correctly identify the fastest route to a location to its users.
The use of binary math is perhaps the most common and one of the most important aspects in computer science. If you go into computer science, working with binary numbers is something you will do in almost everything. This is because the majority of computer programs need binary math in order to operate. Binary, also known as base 2, is where usual numbers are expressed using only the digits 0 and 1. Computers can make calculations using binary math, and binary operations are used in almost all programs and many different programming languages. As well, it is the basics of a computer and the foundation to how it works, and is used to store data.
Calculus is another branch of more advanced mathematics that is regularly used in the field of computer science. Since calculus is largely focused on determining the rate of change, you can calculate integrals and derivatives. There are two different types of calculus, which are differential calculus (which focuses on the change quantity and change rate), and integral calculus (which focuses on the quantity of change that takes place). Some examples of how calculus is applied to computer science are through computer problem-solving, simulations, coding, statistical representations and digital graphing.
Statistics is another example of math regularly applied to computer science. It is mainly used for data-based computer science, which includes data compression, AI (artificial intelligence), and data mining. It is used very often in computer science and is also very important because it helps one understand and evaluate data, as well as drawing conclusions from evaluating models. It helps in these ways because you can visualize the data accurately, and in large quantities, which makes it easier to find a pattern. As well, statistics is used in translators and speech recognition, as well as digital voice assistants. It translates the sound waves from your voice into code, which then uses statistics from the compiled code to identify different patterns that are often used.
Discrete math is also used in computer science, in addition to many other fields, like construction, machine learning, programming, and algorithms. This math is composed of several mathematical concepts, which include logic, probability, and number theory. This math helps with examining and performing calculations on different pieces of data and objects before they are represented. When discrete math is applied to computer science, the goal is usually aimed at computer problem-solving to solve problems, such as various software problems. It is a big part of the foundation of computer science.
Finally, some other mathematical concepts like algebra and complex math are used in many other different aspects of computer science, in addition to binary math, calculus, statistics, and discrete math, which I explained above. Since math is a large foundation that computer science is based off of, it is very important to thoroughly understand these concepts and how it applies to different areas of computer science so that people working in these fields are successful.
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