Connecting Discrete Mathematics and Computer Science

Computer scientists are speed demons. When we are confronted by acomputational problem that we need to solve, we want to solve that problemas quickly as possible. That “need for speed” has driven muchof the advancement in computation over the last 50 years. We discover fasterways of solving important problems: developing data structures that supportapparently instantaneous search of billions of tweets or billions of userson a social networking site; or discovering new, faster algorithms thatsolve practical problems—such as finding shorter routes for deliverydrivers or encrypting packets to be sent over the internet.