What is the difference between a Computer Science a Computer engineering?

Question

Please explain.

Answer 1

Engineering of all kinds is usually concerned with adapting existing tools to specific applications. So a computer engineer might work on chip design for the next generation of computers.

Science of all kinds is generally concerned with expanding existing knowledge and developing new kinds of knowledge. So a computer scientist might try to figure out what might be used instead of chips, or what the theoretical limits of any kind of computer could be.

There is no small amount of overlap between the two - new science is often discovered by engineers who are pushing the limits of their systems, while scientists often have to be excellent engineers in order to design equipment to test their theories.

Perhaps more distinction might be seen where there is less overlap - there are many engineers who never develop any new theories about how computers work, and just produce useful equipment (like Thomas Edison); conversely, there are many scientists who never even get their hands dirty and do all their work on paper and in their head (like Albert Einstein).

If you ask me, they're BOTH great to have around! ( :

Answer 2

Computer science is concerned with the theory and development of computer software (eg, programming languages, operating systems, etc), while computer engineering has to do with the design of actual computers. Computer engineering is a sub-field of electrical engineering.

Answer 3

Computer Science is concerned with the theory of computing, which, by the way, exists independently of computers. Think of algorithms, convergence analysis, Turing machines, and so on.

Computer Engineering is about the mechanics of the computer. Think processors, memory, etc.

Practically speaking, the first is about software, whereas the second deals with hardware.

Answer 4

the word Science and the word Engineering