freeCodeCamp/guide/english/computer-science/index.md

---
title: Computer Science
---
# Computer Science

Computer Science is the study of computers and the concepts that make computers possible.

Much of computer science was pioneered in the latter half of the 20th century.

Today, if you attend an undergraduate computer science course, you will learn about both hardware and software. You'll learn how computers work at a low level of abstraction (machine language) and at a high level of abstraction (modern scripting langauges like JavaScript).

# Computer Science Fields
Computer science is categorized into several fields. The following are among the current established and well-studied fields. Most of the fields are further categorized into sub0fields.
- <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_computation">Theory of Computing</a>
  - Complexity Theory
  - Formal Methods
  - Distributed Algorithms
- <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_security">Security</a>
  - Cryptography<br>
- <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_intelligence">Artificial Intelligence</a>
  - Data Mining
  - Machine Learning
  - Computer Vision
- <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Software_engineering">Software Engineering</a>
- <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_science">Data Sciences</a>
  - Big Data
- <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human%E2%80%93computer_interaction">Human Computer Interaction</a>
  - Brain Computer Interface
- Systems
  - Distributed Systems
  - Operating Systems
  - Database Systems

##More Information
* [Visualization of Data Structures](http://www.cs.usfca.edu/~galles/JavascriptVisual/Algorithms.html)
* [Khan Academy](https://www.khanacademy.org/computing/computer-science) : A deep dive into algorithms, cryptography, introductory computing, and much more.
* [CS50](https://cs50.harvard.edu) : A free, introduction to computer science course, taught by David J. Malan and staff at Harvard & Yale Universities.
* [Visualization of Data Structures](http://www.cs.usfca.edu/~galles/JavascriptVisual/Algorithms.html)
feat(guide): Import guide in to the client app 2018-10-04 13:47:55 +00:00			`---`
			`title: Computer Science`
			`---`
Added "Want to learn more?" section to index.md (#18956) * Added "Want to learn more?" section to index.md * Adjusted heading formatting 2018-10-16 03:08:30 +00:00			`# Computer Science`
feat(guide): Import guide in to the client app 2018-10-04 13:47:55 +00:00
			`Computer Science is the study of computers and the concepts that make computers possible.`

			`Much of computer science was pioneered in the latter half of the 20th century.`

			`Today, if you attend an undergraduate computer science course, you will learn about both hardware and software. You'll learn how computers work at a low level of abstraction (machine language) and at a high level of abstraction (modern scripting langauges like JavaScript).`

			`# Computer Science Fields`
			`Computer science is categorized into several fields. The following are among the current established and well-studied fields. Most of the fields are further categorized into sub0fields.`
fix(guide): update latest copy from guide repo 2018-10-11 23:00:38 +00:00			`- <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theory_of_computation">Theory of Computing</a>`
feat(guide): Import guide in to the client app 2018-10-04 13:47:55 +00:00			`- Complexity Theory`
			`- Formal Methods`
			`- Distributed Algorithms`
fix(guide): update latest copy from guide repo 2018-10-11 23:00:38 +00:00			`- <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer_security">Security</a>`
			`- Cryptography<br>`
			`- <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_intelligence">Artificial Intelligence</a>`
feat(guide): Import guide in to the client app 2018-10-04 13:47:55 +00:00			`- Data Mining`
			`- Machine Learning`
			`- Computer Vision`
fix(guide): update latest copy from guide repo 2018-10-11 23:00:38 +00:00			`- <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Software_engineering">Software Engineering</a>`
			`- <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Data_science">Data Sciences</a>`
feat(guide): Import guide in to the client app 2018-10-04 13:47:55 +00:00			`- Big Data`
fix(guide): update latest copy from guide repo 2018-10-11 23:00:38 +00:00			`- <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human%E2%80%93computer_interaction">Human Computer Interaction</a>`
feat(guide): Import guide in to the client app 2018-10-04 13:47:55 +00:00			`- Brain Computer Interface`
			`- Systems`
			`- Distributed Systems`
			`- Operating Systems`
			`- Database Systems`

Add text "Learn More about CS" (#18939) 2018-10-16 03:21:45 +00:00			`##More Information`
			`* [Visualization of Data Structures](http://www.cs.usfca.edu/~galles/JavascriptVisual/Algorithms.html)`
Added "Want to learn more?" section to index.md (#18956) * Added "Want to learn more?" section to index.md * Adjusted heading formatting 2018-10-16 03:08:30 +00:00			`* [Khan Academy](https://www.khanacademy.org/computing/computer-science) : A deep dive into algorithms, cryptography, introductory computing, and much more.`
			`* [CS50](https://cs50.harvard.edu) : A free, introduction to computer science course, taught by David J. Malan and staff at Harvard & Yale Universities.`
			`* [Visualization of Data Structures](http://www.cs.usfca.edu/~galles/JavascriptVisual/Algorithms.html)`
feat(guide): Import guide in to the client app 2018-10-04 13:47:55 +00:00