Turing Machine
A tiny computer that reads and writes one square at a time.
How it works
- The tape is a long row of squares, each holding a symbol or nothing.
- The head (â–²) looks at one square at a time.
- The state is the machine's current mood, like "carry" or "scan".
- The rules say what to do for each state and symbol: write a new symbol, move left (L), right (R) or stay put (N), and switch to a new state.
That's it. It repeats one rule after another until it reaches the halt state. Simple as it is, this machine can compute anything a modern computer can, given enough tape and time.
State
Steps
Rules
| If the machine is… | …then it does this | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Reads | Writes | Moves | Next state |