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Why are computers so @#!*, and what can we do about it?

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Video duration
00:59:14
Language
English
Abstract
Computers have become ubiquitous and essential, but they remain massively error-prone and insecure - as if we were back in the early days of the industrial revolution, with steam engines exploding left, right, and centre. Why is this, and can we do better? Is it science, engineering, craft, or bodgery?

I'll talk about attempts to mix better engineering methods from a cocktail of empiricism and logic, with examples from network protocols, programming languages, and (especially) the concurrency behaviour of programming languages and multiprocessors (from the ARMs in your phone to x86 and IBM Power servers), together with dealings with architects and language standards groups.

For more details of the underlying research and the many people who have contributed, see: http://www.cl.cam.ac.uk/~pes20/

Talk ID
6574
Event:
31c3
Day
4
Room
Saal 1
Start
12:45 p.m.
Duration
01:00:00
Track
Science
Type of
lecture
Speaker
Peter Sewell
Talk Slug & media link
31c3_-_6574_-_en_-_saal_1_-_201412301245_-_why_are_computers_so_and_what_can_we_do_about_it_-_peter_sewell

Talk & Speaker speed statistics

Very rough underestimation:
142.6 wpm
794.0 spm
144.2 wpm
806.2 spm
100.0% Checking done100.0%
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Talk & Speaker speed statistics with word clouds

Whole talk:
142.6 wpm
794.0 spm
Peter Sewell:
144.2 wpm
806.2 spm