Automata Theory: Its Past and Future

Abstract

This paper briefly reviews key advances in automata theory since 1960. It focuses on why certain lines of inquiry were followed, why others were not, and why some works were deemed more valuable to the discipline than others. I also compare the field today to what it was in 1960, with an eye toward areas in which the biggest breakthroughs are likely to occur in the future. Theoretical computer science may be poised for another period of significant advance, similar to that which occurred in the 1960's and 70's