Pointers are an essential element of computing. Dr Steve Bagley explains how everything rests on pointers. Password Cracking: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7U-RbOKanYs Loops vs Recursion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXNhEYqFo0o Many thanks to Microsoft Research UK for their support with the 'Essentials' mini-series. http://www.facebook.com/computerphile https://twitter.com/computer_phile This video was filmed and edited by Sean Riley. Computer Science at the University of Nottingham: http://bit.ly/nottscomputer Computerphile is a sister project to Brady Haran's Numberphile. More at http://www.bradyharan.com/