Terminieren, abstürzen, sterben, … vom Enden und Verenden von Algorithmen

Georg Trogemann, in: Paradoxien de Finalen, Peter Bexte (Hg.), Kulturverlag Kadmos, Berlin 2023, S. 209 – 227

When an algorithm ends, this may have internal or external reasons. External causes include hardware failures, power breakdowns, or the termination by the user. One could speak of a natural inner end when the algorithm reaches its final state under its own control. However, it could be just as natural that it never reaches an end, for example when a non-rational number is calculated. Theoretical computer science teaches us that there can be no algorithm that decides for all other algorithms whether they end. In addition to hardware-breakdowns and software failures yet another type of algorithmic ending comes into play when in the field of natural computing the algorithms are realized by living organisms. Typical software life cycles provide further forms of continuation and survival of algorithms within semiotic ecosystems. The article concludes with a thought experiment on artificial intelligence.

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