Computers are becoming more and more useful for identifying patterns that
are very subtle or finding patterns in huge amounts of data. For instance, pattern
recognition plays an important role in identifying DNA sequences that are
associated with genetic traits or the activities of viruses. Computers
which can recognize your voice, follow spoken commands, or decipher your
handwriting all rely heavily on pattern recognition.
Finite state machines are a tool computer scientists use to design computer systems that do pattern recognition.
