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It is possible to use the kernel on one computer and the front end on another, although this is not how most people use Mathematica. The two communicate via the MathLink protocol. It also provides debugging capabilities, a presentation environment, and interfaces to usb controllers like gamepads.
The front end provides a convenient human interface for creating and manipulating programmatic structures, allowing graphics, mathematics, programs, text, and user interfaces can be freely edited and intermingled. The kernel is the algorithmic engine for performing computations.
Wolfram Mathematica is split into two parts, the “kernel” and the “front end”.
Ability to create and publish programs that run on the free Mathematica Player. Support for emerging fields such as graph plotting and analysis, alternate input devices, new data formats. Support for efficient datastructures such as sparse arrays, piecewise functions, etc. Highly general interface that allows the uniform manipulation and intermingling of graphics, programs, user interfaces. Integrated computable data sources, from chemistry and pure mathematics to city locations and country statistics. Ability to instantly create user interfaces to arbitrary computations by just specifying parameters. Vast web of mathematical, visualization, graphics, and general programming functions, typically with state of the art implementations. Mathematica’s notebook format allows for the generation of cross-platform, fully customisable files that provide professional mathematical typesetting and publication-quality layout of electronic and printed media. The features include symbolic and high-performance numeric computation, 2D and 3D data visualization, broad programming capabilities, and one-step creation of web documents. It is this range of capabilities – many world-leading in their own right – that makes Mathematica uniquely capable as a “one-stop shop” for you or your organization’s technical work. Mathematica combines powerful computing software with a convenient user interface. Mathematica seamlessly integrates a numeric and symbolic computational engine, graphics system, programming language, documentation system, and advanced connectivity to other applications. It was originally conceived by Stephen Wolfram, developed by a team of mathematicians and programmers that he assembled and led, and it is sold by his company Wolfram Research. Mathematica is a general computing environment, organizing many algorithmic, visualization, and user interface capabilities within a document-like user interface paradigm.