The P vs NP problem is one of the most significant unsolved questions in computer science and mathematics. It asks whether every problem whose solution can be quickly verified (NP problems) can also be solved quickly (P problems). In formal terms, P represents the class of decision problems that can be solved in polynomial time, while NP includes those problems for which a given solution can be verified in polynomial time. The crux of the question is whether or . If it turns out that , it would imply that there are problems that are easy to check but hard to solve, which has profound implications in fields such as cryptography, optimization, and algorithm design.
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