Computer Engineering

Computer Engineering (also called Electronic and Computer Engineering , or Computer Systems Engineering) is a discipline that combines both Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. Computer engineers usually have training in electrical engineering, software design and hardware-software integration instead of only software engineering or electrical engineering. Computer engineers are involved in many aspects of computing, from the design of individual microprocessors, personal computers, and supercomputers, to circuit design. This field of engineering not only focuses on how computer systems themselves work, but also how they integrate into the larger picture.
Usual tasks involving computer engineers include writing software and firmware for embedded microcontrollers, designing VLSI chips, designing analog sensors, designing mixed signal circuit boards, and designing operating systems.[citation needed] Computer engineers are also suited for robotics research,[citation needed] which relies heavily on using digital systems to control and monitor electrical systems like motors, communications, and sensors.


Computer engineering as an academic discipline
The first accredited computer engineering degree program in the United States was established at Case Western Reserve University in 1971; as of October 2004 there were 170 ABET-accredited computer engineering programs in the US.
Due to increasing job requirements for engineers, who can design and manage all forms of computer systems used in industry, some tertiary institutions around the world offer a bachelor's degree generally called computer engineering. Both computer engineering and electronic engineering programs include analog and digital circuit design in their curricula. As with most engineering disciplines, having a sound knowledge of mathematics and sciences is necessary for computer engineers.
In many institutions, computer engineering students are allowed to choose areas of in-depth study in their junior and senior year, as the full breadth of knowledge used in the design and application of computers is well beyond the scope of an undergraduate degree. The joint IEEE/ACM Curriculum Guidelines for Undergraduate Degree Programs in Computer Engineering defines the core knowledge areas of computer engineering as

Computer science

Computer science (or computing science) is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation, and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems.[1][2][3] It is frequently described as the systematic study of algorithmic processes that describe and transform information. According to Peter J. Denning, the fundamental question underlying computer science is, "What can be (efficiently) automated?"[4] Computer science has many sub-fields; some, such as computer graphics, emphasize the computation of specific results, while others, such as computational complexity theory, study the properties of computational problems. Still others focus on the challenges in implementing computations. For example, programming language theory studies approaches to describing computations, while computer programming applies specific programming languages to solve specific computational problems, and human-computer interaction focuses on the challenges in making computers and computations useful, usable, and universally accessible to people.
The general public sometimes confuses computer science with vocational areas that deal with computers (such as information technology), or think that it relates to their own experience of computers, which typically involves activities such as gaming, web-browsing, and word-processing. However, the focus of computer science is more on understanding the properties of the programs used to implement software such as games and web-browsers, and using that understanding to create new programs or improve existing ones.[5]


History
Main article: History of computer science
The early foundations of what would become computer science predate the invention of the modern digital computer. Machines for calculating fixed numerical tasks, such as the abacus, have existed since antiquity. Wilhelm Schickard built the first mechanical calculator in 1623.[6] Charles Babbage designed a difference engine in Victorian times[7] helped by Ada Lovelace.[8] Around 1900, punch-card machines[9] were introduced. However, all of these machines were constrained to perform a single task, or at best some subset of all possible tasks.
During the 1940s, as newer and more powerful computing machines were developed, the term computer came to refer to the machines rather than their human predecessors. As it became clear that computers could be used for more than just mathematical calculations, the field of computer science broadened to study computation in general. Computer science began to be established as a distinct academic discipline in the 1950s and early 1960s, with the creation of the first computer science departments and degree programs.[4][10] Since practical computers became available, many applications of computing have become distinct areas of study in their own right.
Although many initially believed it impossible that computers themselves could actually be a scientific field of study, in the late fifties it gradually became accepted among the greater academic population.[11] It is the now well-known IBM brand that formed part of the computer science revolution during this time. IBM (short for International Business Machines) released the IBM 704 and later the IBM 709 computers, which were widely used during the exploration period of such devices. "Still, working with the IBM [computer] was frustrating...if you had misplaced as much as one letter in one instruction, the program would crash, and you would have to start the whole process over again".[11] During the late 1950s, the computer science discipline was very much in its developmental stages, and such issues were commonplace.
Time has seen significant improvements in the usability and effectiveness of computer science technology. Modern society has seen a significant shift from computers being used solely by experts or professionals to a more widespread user base.