


The same can be said for the pattern you follow to knit a scarf or put together some Ikea furniture.Īnd when you’re putting together a list of pros and cons to decide whether or not to accept a job offer or to make a big decision, you’re also following what’s known as an intuitive algorithm.īy their very nature, the intuitive algorithms that humans use aren’t precise. Simply put, an algorithm is a finite series of steps that help solve a problem – and it’s a technique we use all the time.Įven a recipe can be thought of as an algorithm: you follow a series of instructions to get the desired result, a delicious meal. But the use of algorithms can be traced roughly four thousand years back, to the Sumerian civilization. The word actually dates back to the ninth century, when it was first used by the Persian mathematician Muhammad al-Khwarizmi.

But you may have asked yourself, “What exactly is an algorithm?” If you’re someone who tries to stay abreast of today’s technology, you probably already know that computers use algorithms all the time to solve problems.
