algorithm

noun algorithms · algorism · augrim

1. countable A collection of ordered steps that solve a mathematical problem. A precise step-by-step plan for a computational procedure that possibly begins with an input value and yields an output value in a finite number of steps. Informally, an algorithm is any well-defined computational procedure that takes some value, or set of values, as input and produces some value, or set of values, as output. An algorithm is thus a sequence of computational steps that transform the input into the output.
2. broadly, countable, uncountable A flow chart illustrating a decision-making process for human users, especially health care professionals. This retrospective observational analysis evaluated BP [blood pressure] control in an entirely remote management program before and during the pandemic. A team of pharmacists, nurse practitioners, physicians, and nonlicensed navigators used an evidence‐based clinical algorithm to optimize hypertensi
3. obsolete, uncountable Calculation with Arabic numerals; algorism.
4. countable, informal, metonymically, uncountable A software system that makes decisions for end users on a platform; (in particular, social media) the algorithmic curation system on social media feeds; the personalized feed itself. [Donald] Glover began his acceptance speech by saying, “First, I want to thank the great algorithm that put us all here.”