Art of Computer Virus Research and Defense, The

Chapter 1. Introduction to the Games of Nature

“ To me art is a desire to communicate.”

—Endre Szasz

Computer virus research is a fascinating subject to many who are interested in nature, biology, or mathematics. Everyone who uses a computer will likely encounter some form of the increasingly common problem of computer viruses. In fact, some well-known computer virus researchers became interested in the field when, decades ago, their own systems were infected.

The title of Donald Knuth's book series¹, The Art of Computer Programming, suggests that anything we can explain to a computer is science, but that which we cannot currently explain to a computer is an art. Computer virus research is a rich, complex, multifaceted subject. It is about ...