In model-driven engineering

Model-driven engineering

Model-driven engineering is a software development methodology which focuses on creating and exploiting domain models , rather than on the computing concepts...

, the model of computation explains how the behaviour of the whole system is the result of the behaviour of each of its components.

In computability theory

Computability theory (computer science)

Computability is the ability to solve a problem in an effective manner. It is a key topic of the field of computability theory within mathematical logic and the theory of computation within computer science...

 and computational complexity theory

Computational complexity theory

Computational complexity theory is a branch of the theory of computation in theoretical computer science and mathematics that focuses on classifying computational problems according to their inherent difficulty, and relating those classes to each other...

, a model of computation is the definition of the set of allowable operations used in computation and their respective costs. It is used for measuring the complexity of an algorithm in execution time and or memory space: by assuming a certain model of computation, it is possible to analyze the computational resources required or to discuss the limitations of algorithms or computers.

Some examples of models include Turing machines, recursive functions

Recursion (computer science)

Recursion in computer science is a method where the solution to a problem depends on solutions to smaller instances of the same problem. The approach can be applied to many types of problems, and is one of the central ideas of computer science....

, lambda calculus

Lambda calculus

In mathematical logic and computer science, lambda calculus, also written as λ-calculus, is a formal system for function definition, function application and recursion. The portion of lambda calculus relevant to computation is now called the untyped lambda calculus...

, and production systems.

In the field of runtime analysis of algorithms

Analysis of algorithms

To analyze an algorithm is to determine the amount of resources necessary to execute it. Most algorithms are designed to work with inputs of arbitrary length...

, it is common to specify a computational model in terms of primitive operations allowed which have unit cost, or simply unit-cost operations. A commonly used example is the random access machine

Random access machine

In computer science, random access machine is an abstract machine in the general class of register machines. The RAM is very similar to the counter machine but with the added capability of 'indirect addressing' of its registers...

, which has unit cost for read and write access to all of its memory cells. In this respect, it differs from the above mentioned Turing machine model.

There are many models of computation, differing in the set of admissible operations and their computations cost. They fall into the following broad categories: abstract machine

Abstract machine

An abstract machine, also called an abstract computer, is a theoretical model of a computer hardware or software system used in automata theory...

, used in proofs of computability and upper bounds on computational complexity of algorithms, and decision tree model

Decision tree model

In computational complexity and communication complexity theories the decision tree model is the model of computation or communication in which an algorithm or communication process is considered to be basically a decision tree, i.e., a sequence of branching operations based on comparisons of some...

s, used in proofs of lower bounds on computational complexity of algorithmic problems.

A key point which is often overlooked is that published lower bounds for problems are often given for a model of computation that is more restricted than the set of operations that you could use in practice and therefore there are algorithms that are faster than what would naively be thought possible.

See also

• Stack machine
  Stack machine
  A stack machine may be* A real or emulated computer that evaluates each sub-expression of a program statement via a pushdown data stack and uses a reverse Polish notation instruction set....
  
   (0-operand machine)
• Accumulator machine (1-operand machine)
• Register machine
  Register machine
  In mathematical logic and theoretical computer science a register machine is a generic class of abstract machines used in a manner similar to a Turing machine...
  
   (2,3,... operand machine)
• Random access machine
  Random access machine
  In computer science, random access machine is an abstract machine in the general class of register machines. The RAM is very similar to the counter machine but with the added capability of 'indirect addressing' of its registers...