What is problem?

  • (noun): A state of difficulty that needs to be resolved.
    Synonyms: job
    See also — Additional definitions below

Problem

A problem is an obstacle, impediment, difficulty or challenge, or any situation that invites resolution; the resolution of which is recognized as a solution or contribution toward a known purpose or goal. A problem implies a desired outcome coupled with an apparent deficiency, doubt or inconsistency that prevents the outcome from taking place.

Read more about Problem.

Some articles on problem:

Y2K Problem - Background
... and was the common abbreviation for the year 2000 software problem ... roll-over of the millennium, even though the problem could have occurred at the end of any ordinary century ... The Year 2000 problem was the subject of the early book, Computers in Crisis by Jerome and Marilyn Murray (Petrocelli, 1984 reissued by McGraw-Hill under the title ...
Divide And Conquer Algorithm
... A divide and conquer algorithm works by recursively breaking down a problem into two or more sub-problems of the same (or related) type, until these become simple enough to be solved directly ... The solutions to the sub-problems are then combined to give a solution to the original problem ... a theorem by induction, it is often necessary to replace the original problem by a more general or complicated problem in order to get the recursion ...
Hilbert's Nullstellensatz - Effective Nullstellensatz
... To solve this problem, it suffices to provide an upper bound on the total degree of the such a bound reduces the problem to a finite system of linear ... A related problem is the ideal membership problem, which consists in testing if a polynomial belongs to an ideal ... For this problem also, a solution is provided by a upper bound on the degree of the A general solution of the ideal membership problem provides an effective Nullstellensatz, at least for the weak ...
Necklace Problem
... The necklace problem is a problem in recreational mathematics, solved in the early 21st century ...
Hamiltonian Path Problem
... field of graph theory the Hamiltonian path problem and the Hamiltonian cycle problem are problems of determining whether a Hamiltonian path or a Hamiltonian cycle exists in a ... Both problems are NP-complete ...

More definitions of "problem":

  • (noun): A source of difficulty.
    Example: "What's the problem?"
    Synonyms: trouble
  • (noun): A question raised for consideration or solution.
    Example: "Our homework consisted of ten problems to solve"

Famous quotes containing the word problem:

    The problem of the novelist who wishes to write about a man’s encounter with God is how he shall make the experience—which is both natural and supernatural—understandable, and credible, to his reader. In any age this would be a problem, but in our own, it is a well- nigh insurmountable one. Today’s audience is one in which religious feeling has become, if not atrophied, at least vaporous and sentimental.
    Flannery O’Connor (1925–1964)

    We have heard all of our lives how, after the Civil War was over, the South went back to straighten itself out and make a living again. It was for many years a voiceless part of the government. The balance of power moved away from it—to the north and the east. The problems of the north and the east became the big problem of the country and nobody paid much attention to the economic unbalance the South had left as its only choice.
    Lyndon Baines Johnson (1908–1973)

    Involuntary mental hospitalization is like slavery. Refining the standards for commitment is like prettifying the slave plantations. The problem is not how to improve commitment, but how to abolish it.
    Thomas Szasz (b. 1920)