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Mathematics & Algorithms · Recorded milestone

NP-completeness

Recorded year1971

Stephen Cook defines the P versus NP problem, the central question of computer science.

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Built on

Turing machineRecorded · 1936enables
Stored-program computerRecorded · 1948requires

Led to

Swarm intelligence algorithmsRecorded · 1992enables
P versus NP resolvedForecast · ~2045enables

Sources & evidence

Additional source

Dataset updated 2026-10-18. This individual record has not been separately re-reviewed.