Mobile phones, ATMs, modern cars, televisions, e-readers: none of them would work without software. The heart of software is formed by algorithms: step-by-step procedures to perform given tasks.
In times of war, secure communication can be the difference between life and death, or even winning or losing a war. The first to patent a rotor machine in Europe was Arthur Scherbius in 1918. Scherbius’ version of the rotor machine became a commercial success, unlike the other patented machines. Scherbius named his machine Enigma.
Recently there has been a breakthrough in the field of algorithms for geometric network problems, concerning the complexity of the Euclidean Travelling Salesman Problem.
We might not be fully aware of it, but we all use wireless communication everyday in many familiar situations, such as when we connect our laptop to the local Wi-Fi network, when we use navigation apps to orientate ourselves while driving, or when we send a message to a friend using our smartphones. It has become so natural for the world we live in, that we often take it for granted and have no idea of how it works.
When you browse the internet a lot of websites show you banners with advertisements. And if you reload the page some new flashy advertisement pops up in the same place. Did you know that while your web page is loading an auction takes place?
