Is Computer Science Science?

This article discusses that whether computer science should be recognized as a branch of science or not. Science, engineering, and mathematics combine into a unique and potent blend in our field. Some of the activities are primarily science--for example, experimental algorithms, experimental computer science, and computational science. Some are primarily engineering--for example, design, development, software engineering, and computer engineering. The scientific paradigm, which dates back to Francis Bacon, is the process of forming hypotheses and testing them through experiments; successful hypotheses become models that explain and predict phenomena in the world. Computing science follows this paradigm in studying information processes. The European synonym for computer science--informatics--more clearly suggests the field is about information processes, not computers. Computing research is rife with examples of the scientific paradigm. Cognition researchers, for example, hypothesize that much intelligent behavior is the result of information processes in brains and nervous systems; they build systems that implement hypothesized information processes and compare them with the real thing.