Turing Machines - Overview

Not only can Turing machines be
programmed as functioning cellular
automata, they can also be designed
to replicate themselves indefinitely.
Or, at least until they run out of
space and halt.

A Turing machine is a theoretical computing machine invented by Alan Turing in 1937. It consists of tape that can be moved back and forth and an active element called the head that possesses a state, and a set of instructions for how the head should modify the tape immediately underneath it.and move the tape afterward.

The Turing machine is the simplest form of computer ever devised. Almost all digital computers have a Turing machine at their core. The influence of Turing machines is further seen in the theoretical underpinnings of computer science as well: much of the theory considers states and what actions are taken to change them. However, even though the Turing machine made numerous contributions to mathematics and computer science, it was initially invented as part of a solution to a mathematical problem about decidability.