Automata Theory and its Applications
Thetheoryoffiniteautomataonfinitestings,infinitestrings,andtreeshashadadistinguishedhistory.First,automatawereintroducedtorepresentidealizedswitchingcircuitsaugmentedbyunitdelays.ThiswastheperiodofShannon,McCullouchandPitts,andHowardAiken,endingabout1950.Theninthe1950stherewasthewo