Reference Terms
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Computer software
Software is a program that enables a computer to perform a specific task, as opposed to the physical components of the system (hardware). This includes application software such as a word processor, which enables a user to perform a task, and system software such as an operating system, which enables other software to run properly, by interfacing with hardware and with other software. Practical computer systems divide software into three major classes: system software, programming software and application software, although the distinction is arbitrary, and often blurred.
Computer software has to be "loaded" into the computer's storage (such as a hard drive, memory, or RAM). Once the software is loaded, the computer is able to execute the software. Computers operate by executing the computer program. This involves passing instructions from the application software, through the system software, to the hardware which ultimately receives the instruction as machine code. Each instruction causes the computer to carry out an operation -- moving data, carrying out a computation, or altering the control flow of instructions.
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Computers & Math News
August 16, 2025
Aug. 14, 2025 — Cornell engineers have built the first fully integrated “microwave brain” — a silicon microchip that can process ultrafast data and wireless signals at the same time, while using less than 200 milliwatts of power. Instead of digital steps, it ...
Aug. 13, 2025 — Scientists have developed a lightning-fast AI tool called HEAT-ML that can spot hidden “safe zones” inside a fusion reactor where parts are protected from blistering plasma heat. Finding these areas, known as magnetic shadows, is key to keeping ...
Aug. 13, 2025 — Scientists have designed swarms of microscopic robots that communicate and coordinate using sound waves, much like bees or birds. These self-organizing micromachines can adapt to their surroundings, reform if damaged, and potentially undertake ...
Aug. 12, 2025 — AI is now a routine part of workplace communication, with most professionals using tools like ChatGPT and Gemini. A study of over 1,000 professionals shows that while AI makes managers’ messages more polished, heavy reliance can damage trust. ...
Aug. 11, 2025 — Scientists have found that microscopic gold clusters can act like the world’s most accurate quantum systems, while being far easier to scale up. With tunable spin properties and mass production potential, they could transform quantum computing and ...
Aug. 8, 2025 — Researchers at Scripps have created T7-ORACLE, a powerful new tool that speeds up evolution, allowing scientists to design and improve proteins thousands of times faster than nature. Using engineered bacteria and a modified viral replication system, ...
Aug. 2, 2025 — Researchers have successfully demonstrated a spectrometer that is orders of magnitude smaller than current technologies and can accurately measure wavelengths of light from ultraviolet to the near-infrared. The technology makes it possible to create ...
July 31, 2025 — Stepping into a virtual forest or waterfall scene through VR could be the future of pain management. A new study shows that immersive virtual nature dramatically reduces pain sensitivity almost as ...
July 28, 2025 — Deep in Serbia's Jadar Valley, scientists discovered a mineral with an uncanny resemblance to Superman's Kryptonite both in composition and name. Dubbed jadarite, this dull white crystal lacks the ...
July 28, 2025 — Quantum computing may one day outperform classical machines in solving certain complex problems, but when and how this “quantum advantage” emerges has remained unclear. Now, researchers from Kyoto University have linked this advantage to ...
July 27, 2025 — Engineers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison uncovered a critical flaw in how lunar and Martian rovers are tested on Earth. Simulations revealed that test results have been misleading for decades because researchers only adjusted rover weight to ...
July 25, 2025 — A breakthrough AI system is revolutionizing cancer immunotherapy by enabling scientists to design protein-based keys that train a patient s immune cells to attack cancer with extreme precision. This method, capable of reducing development time from ...
Latest Headlines
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July 25, 2025 — Researchers at Harvard have created a groundbreaking metasurface that can replace bulky and complex optical components used in quantum computing with a single, ultra-thin, nanostructured layer. This ...
July 25, 2025 — AI-generated videos are becoming dangerously convincing and UC Riverside researchers have teamed up with Google to fight back. Their new system, ...
July 24, 2025 — Aalto University physicists in Finland have set a new benchmark in quantum computing by achieving a record-breaking millisecond coherence in a transmon qubit — nearly doubling prior limits. This ...
July 24, 2025 — Even the most powerful AI models, including ChatGPT, can make surprisingly basic errors when navigating ethical medical decisions, a new study reveals. Researchers tweaked familiar ethical dilemmas ...
July 20, 2025 — Researchers at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities have made a promising breakthrough in memory technology by using a nickel-tungsten alloy ...
July 17, 2025 — Using advanced metasurfaces, researchers can now twist light to uncover hidden images and detect molecular handedness, potentially revolutionizing data encryption, biosensing, and drug ...
July 14, 2025 — A new leap in lab automation is shaking up how scientists discover materials. By switching from slow, traditional methods to real-time, dynamic chemical experiments, researchers have created a ...
July 10, 2025 — A groundbreaking step in AI hardware efficiency comes from Germany, where scientists have engineered a vast spin waveguide network that processes information with far less energy. These spin waves ...
July 8, 2025 — Neural networks first treat sentences like puzzles solved by word order, but once they read enough, a tipping point sends them diving into word meaning instead—an abrupt “phase transition” ...
July 7, 2025 — Researchers have developed an ultra-thin drumhead-like membrane that lets sound signals, or phonons, travel through it with astonishingly low loss, ...