Algorithms For Dummies

Differentiating Words

When working with characters, a computer sees numbers, not letters. The num-

bers are actually just a series of 0s and 1s to the computer and don’t actually have 

any meaning. Combining characters into strings just makes the series of 0s and 1s 

longer. Consequently, comparing two strings, something that a human can do at 

a glance, can take time within a computer, and confusion is likely between conju-

gates. For example, unless you’re careful in constructing the algorithm, a com-

puter could confuse enlist and listen. More important, the computer would require 

time  to  discern  the  difference  between  the  two.  The  separating  words  problem 

seeks to find the smallest (and fastest) possible algorithm (a deterministic finite 

automaton, DFN, in this case) to perform word separation. The goal is to accept 

one word and reject another, given two words of a particular length.

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CHAPTER 22