What is a computer?

A computer is a machine that follows instructions. That is all it does.

Think of a cook following a recipe. The cook does each step in order, exactly as written. If the recipe has a mistake, the cook still follows it — because the cook does not understand the food. They only follow steps.

A computer is the same. It follows each instruction one at a time. A list of instructions is called a program. The part that follows them is called the CPU.

A computer is fast and exact. But it never understands what it is doing.