Thinking Abstractly

Thinking Abstractly

1. Types of Abstraction

   • Control Abstraction
     • Makes high-level languages possible by recognising that selection and iteration are common, and can be implemented in consistent ways between the problems
   • Data Abstraction
     • It is about data structures. Sets of related data stored in a particular way; Like Arrays or Queues
   • Java and Abstraction
     • An OS-Specific Java compiler residing on a computer is responsible for translating generic Java comments into specific hardware calls.
     • Java programming language was designed to run on any computer, regardless of the OS or CPU, so it is even more abstract than most.

2. What is Abstraction?

   • It is a representation of reality using symbols to show real-life features.
   • It is a means of hiding detail, and only using relevant detail.
   • It is the process of separating ideas from particular instances/ reality.

3. Why Use Abstraction?

   • Allows us to decide which are worth investigating.
   • Maximises our chances of solving a problem.
   • Helps separate the component parts.

4. Layers of Abstraction

   • Computational thinking is the process of progressively identifying abstract elements in a problem and applying known techniques to deal with them.
     • For a given problem the first layer of abstraction might be to break it down into subroutines.
       • A Large problem can be broken down into smaller sections ( Lower level abstractions ). Each layer can be hidden from the other.
         • So a programmer can be working on one problem at a time.
       • Abstraction in OS
         • Tasks are categorised and broken down into common elements.
           • Elements of software and hardware communicate with each other through a set of standard calls.
             • These are combined into an interface referred to as an Advanced Programming Interface or API for short,
         • The Core of an OS functionality is known as the Kernel.
           • All parts of a software system need to talk through the kernel which will authorise and handle requests for resources.