Physical Computing: A Category Theoretic Perspective on Physical Computation and System Compositionality

TL;DR

This paper presents a category theory framework to formalize physical computing systems, emphasizing their compositional and relational structures, and broadening the understanding of physical devices beyond classical definitions.

Contribution

It introduces a novel categorical approach to model physical computing, integrating recent advancements and providing a structured formalism for system interactions.

Findings

Formalizes physical computing systems using category theory

Encapsulates recent formalisms in physical computing

Provides a structured method to analyze system interactions

Abstract

This paper introduces a category theory-based framework to redefine physical computing in light of advancements in quantum computing and non-standard computing systems. By integrating classical definitions within this broader perspective, the paper rigorously recontextualizes what constitutes physical computing devices and processes. It demonstrates how the compositional nature and relational structures of physical computing systems can be coherently formalized using category theory. This approach not only encapsulates recent formalisms in physical computing but also offers a structured method to explore the dynamic interactions within these systems.