Computational Science

COMPUTATIONAL SCIENCE BY BRUCE G. BUCHANAN Department of Computer Science University of Pittsburgh Pittsburgh, Pa. " In a recent review of a 10-year software project, a grandmaster of programming opens his log book of errors and changes. He classifies 15 reasons for making changes and analyzes outstanding examples of most of them. His conclusions about the ubiquity of errors should be taped beside every programmer’s terminal. Programming has always been a humbling experience; programmin

Written byBruce Buchanan
| 2 min read

Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
2:00
Share

BY BRUCE G. BUCHANAN

Department of Computer Science
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, Pa.

" In a recent review of a 10-year software project, a grandmaster of programming opens his log book of errors and changes. He classifies 15 reasons for making changes and analyzes outstanding examples of most of them. His conclusions about the ubiquity of errors should be taped beside every programmer’s terminal. Programming has always been a humbling experience; programming well is even more so.

D.E. Knuth, “The errors of TEX,” Software—Practice and Experience, 19, 607-85, July 1989. (Stanford University, Calif.)

" Two formal techniques for developing a running program from informal requirements are detailed in a case study. Top-down specification is seen to have considerable power.

H. Partsch, “From informal requirements to a running program: a case study in algebraic specification and transformational programming,” Science of Computer Programming, 11, 263-97, April 1989. (Katholieke Universiteit, Nijmegen, The Netherlands)

...

Interested in reading more?

Become a Member of

The Scientist Logo
Receive full access to digital editions of The Scientist, as well as TS Digest, feature stories, more than 35 years of archives, and much more!
Already a member? Login Here

Meet the Author

Published In

Share
July Digest 2025
July 2025, Issue 1

What Causes an Earworm?

Memory-enhancing neural networks may also drive involuntary musical loops in the brain.

View this Issue
Genome Modeling and Design: From the Molecular to Genome Scale

Genome Modeling and Design: From the Molecular to Genome Scale

Twist Bio 
Screening 3D Brain Cell Cultures for Drug Discovery

Screening 3D Brain Cell Cultures for Drug Discovery

Discover how to streamline tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte production.

Producing Tumor-infiltrating Lymphocyte Therapeutics

cytiva logo
Explore synthetic DNA’s many applications in cancer research

Weaving the Fabric of Cancer Research with Synthetic DNA

Twist Bio 

Products

The Scientist Placeholder Image

Sino Biological Sets New Industry Standard with ProPure Endotoxin-Free Proteins made in the USA

sartorius-logo

Introducing the iQue 5 HTS Platform: Empowering Scientists  with Unbeatable Speed and Flexibility for High Throughput Screening by Cytometry

parse_logo

Vanderbilt Selects Parse Biosciences GigaLab to Generate Atlas of Early Neutralizing Antibodies to Measles, Mumps, and Rubella

shiftbioscience

Shift Bioscience proposes improved ranking system for virtual cell models to accelerate gene target discovery