Abstract Geometrical Computation and the Linear Blum, Shub and Smale Model

International audienceAbstract geometrical computation naturally arises as a continuous counterpart of cellular automata. It relies on signals (dimensionless points) traveling at constant speed in a continuous space in continuous time. When signals collide, they are replaced by new signals according to some collision rules. This simple dynamics relies on real numbers with exact precision and is already known to be able to carry out any (discrete) Turing-computation. The Blum, Shub and Small (BSS) model is famous for computing over ℝ (considered here as a ℝ unlimited register machine) by performing algebraic computations. We prove that signal machines (set of signals and corresponding rules) and the infinite-dimension linear (multiplications are only by constants) BSS machines can simulate one another

Collision-based Computing

International audienceCollision-based computing is an implementation of logical circuits, mathematical machines or other computing and information processing devices in homogeneous uniform unstructured media with traveling mobile localizations. A quanta of information is represented by a compact propagating pattern (glider in cellular automata, soliton in optical system, wave-fragment in excitable chemical system). Logical truth corresponds to presence of the localization, logical false to absence of the localization; logical values can be also represented by a particular state of the localization. When two more or more traveling localizations collide they change their velocity vectors and/or states. Post-collision trajectories and/or states of the localizations represent results of a logical operations implemented by the collision. One of the principle advantages of the a collision-based computing medium —hidden in 1D systems but obvious in 2D and 3D media— is that the medium is architecture-less: nothing is hardwired, there are no stationary wires or gates, a trajectory of a propagating information quanta can be see as a momentary wire. We introduce basics of collision-based computing, and overview the collision-based computing schemes in 1D and 2D cellular automata and continuous excitable media. Also we provide an overview of collision-based schemes where particles/collisions are dimensionless