Concurrent computing machines and physical space-time

Original · EN

Concrete computing machines, either sequential or concurrent, rely on an intimate relation between computation and time. We recall the general characteristic properties of physical time and of present realizations of computing systems. We emphasize the role of computing interferences, i.e. the necessity to avoid them in order to give a causal implementation to logical operations. We compare synchronous and asynchronous systems, and make a brief survey of some methods used to deal with computing interferences. Using a graphic representation, we show that synchronous and asynchronous circuits reflect the same opposition as the Newtonian and relativistic causal structures for physical space-time.