Information processing involves the capture of information in a form that is retrievable and analyzable. Computers are ideally suited for the processing of information, given their capacity for storage of information and the availability of a myriad of analysis software.

The ability to process information is increasing in importance, as the amount of data collected by instruments, experimental simulations, and by large scale projects such as the Human Genome Project grow to overwhelming proportions. In the absence of processing, databases can be meaningless. Only by finding order and answers to posed questions does the information take on meaning.

The use of machines for the processing of information has a long history. Machine-assisted information processing began in 1642 with the invention of the calculating machine by Blaise Pascal. Charles Babbage devised a prototype for the modern day computer in the nineteenth century. The age of computer information processing...