Effective Computation in Physics

Glossary

absolute path

The full, unambiguous path from the root directory at the top of the tree, all the way to the file or directory being indicated.

API

Application programming interfaces are the public-facing functions, methods, and data with which users and developers interact.

assertion

An assertion, in software, is an operation that compares two values. If the assertion returns a false Boolean value, a runtime exception is thrown.

assignment

Assignment statements apply values to variable names. Most modern languages use = to denote assignment. Notably, R uses left and right arrows (<- and ->).

attributes

Any variable may have attributes, or attrs, which live on the variable. Attributes are also sometimes known as members. They may be accessed using the binary . operator.

awk

A shell program for manipulation and analysis of column-based text files.

bash

The Bourne Again SHell, which combines features from previous shells and seeks to provide a scripting language for interacting with an operating system through a terminal emulator.

binary

An operator that takes exactly two variables or expressions.

call stack

Also called the execution stack, this is the list of function calls that have been made but not completed. At a certain point of execution, such as a crash, the call stack makes up the traceback.

class

A class defines a collection of functions and data. Classes also define constructors, which describe how to create the objects that those functions ...