Computers go back centuries. Not the computers we know today – before them we had unreliable valves, and before that, complex mechanical computers turned by hand, and even before that, it was the job of a human to compute numbers. The first computers were very different from what we have today - they were people! The term ‘Computer’ meant ‘One who Computes’. It was the tedious job of calculating difficult mathematic equations. The problem was, these computers were human, and humans make mistakes. In 1821, Charles Babbage pored over a sheet of mathematical equations. Finding error after error, he decided that what he needed was a machine – a computer – to do it for him. Such a machine would not make human errors. Babbage designed a mechanical device called the Difference Engine, and a section of the machine was built. Unfortunately, Babbage’s investors could not see the progress he was making and they cut the funding. The Difference Engine was never completed. However, Charles Babbage had paved the way for future developments in this new area of technology. The vacuum tube was invented in 1907. It propelled the electronic industry into the future, allowing for inventions such as the radio. These vacuum tubes were huge, unreliable and required a lot of power. However, used as switches, they made electronic computing possible. Valves were a key component for the first programmable computer, Colossus. During the Second World War, brilliant mathematicians set their minds to cracking codes sent by the Nazis. Codes took months to crack, by which time they would be outdated. Thus the British computer by the name of Colossus was built to decipher the Enigma Code sent by the Germans. Designed by Tommy Flowers, it was the ... ... middle of paper ... ...le. The Osborne 1 of 1981 is widely proclaimed as the first true portable computer. Although very successful, it was bulky and could never be called a ‘laptop’ by today’s standards. The 1989 NEC UltraLite was considered the first ‘notebook style’ portable computer. Today, an average laptop ranges from $500 to $1000 and are a common sight in homes, workplaces and schools. With people taking technology on the go, new ways for devices to talk to each other had to be devised. There had to be no cables tying computers to the nearest power outlet or router. WiFi, or Wireless Local Area Networking was invented by Australia’s very own CSIRO as a way to send large amounts of information very quickly. It is estimated that over five billion devices use this technology (end of 2013) to connect to the internet and to transfer data quickly without being held back by wires.
Alan Turing set up his machine in such way that it will look for the letter that Nazis are using to encrypt the phrase “Hail Hitler”. And by using the settings Alan Turing broke the Enigma code in less then 20 minutes by using his machine which he named “The Bomb Machine”.
Alan Turing was a very intelligent man who attended Bletchley Park the main site for code breaking. Alan Turing invented “bombe,” an electromechanical device. “Bombe” helped decipher encrypted messages given by Enigma. Later Gordon Welchman made significant improvements to “bombe.” The information received from Enigma, known as “ultra” was used in every step of the decoding process (O’Neill 160). Ultra was considered as ‘top secret’ and only few knew about the whole operation. Turing’s impeccable intelligence helped break Enigma. As well as develop a technique, “banburismus” that later helped read naval messages. Thanks to Turing and the “bombe” German codes were broken and prevented many
People have been in awe of computers since they were first invented. At first scientist said that computers would only be for government usage only. “Then when the scientists saw the potential computers had, scientist then predicted that by 1990 computers may one day invade the home of just about ever citizen in the world” (“History” Internet), the scientists were slightly wrong, because by 1990 computers were just beginning to catch on. Then a few years later when scientists when to major corporations to get help with a special project, the corporations said no, because computers would just be a fad and they wouldn’t make much money off of it. “By definition Abacus is the first computer (the proper definition of a computer is one who or that which computes) ever invented” (Internet).
In 500 B.C. the abacus was first used by the Babylonians as an aid to simple arithmetic. In 1623 Wihelm Schickard (1592 - 1635) invented a "Calculating Clock". This mechanical machine could add and subtract up to 6 digit numbers, and warned of an overflow by ringing a bell. J. H. Mueller comes up with the idea of the "difference engine", in 1786. This calculator could tabulate values of a polynomial. Muellers attempt to raise funds fails and the project was forgotten. Scheutz and his son Edward produced a 3rd order difference engine with a printer in 1843 and their government agreed to fund their next project.
Mark I. It was actually a electromechanical calculation. It is said that this was the first potentially computers. In 1951 Remington Rand’s came out with the UNIVAC it began
Although the majority of people cannot imagine life without computers, they owe their gratitude toward an algorithm machine developed seventy to eighty years ago. Although the enormous size and primitive form of the object might appear completely unrelated to modern technology, its importance cannot be over-stated. Not only did the Turing Machine help the Allies win World War II, but it also laid the foundation for all computers that are in use today. The machine also helped its creator, Alan Turing, to design more advanced devices that still cause discussion and controversy today. The Turing Machine serves as a testament to the ingenuity of its creator, the potential of technology, and the glory of innovation.
During World War II, Turing used his mathematical skills in the Department of Communications in Britain to decipher German codes. The Germans were using a type of computer called the “Enigma” which was able to generate a constantly changing code that was impossible for the code breakers to decipher in a timely fashion. During this time Turing and h...
Computer engineering started about 5,000 years ago in China when they invented the abacus. The abacus is a manual calculator in which you move beads back and forth on rods to add or subtract. Other inventors of simple computers include Blaise Pascal who came up with the arithmetic machine for his father’s work. Also Charles Babbage produced the Analytical Engine, which combined math calculations from one problem and applied it to solve other complex problems. The Analytical Engine is similar to today’s computers.
Wi-Fi (Wireless Network) or 802.11 networking is a phenomenal way of providing Internet wirelessly at a low cost. Using radio waves, a wireless network connects a PC, mobile phone or just about anything that connects to the internet wirelessly by a router. By transmitting signals at 2.4 or 5 GHz it allows the waves to transmit more data at a faster rate. Typical Wi-Fi standards are 802.11a, b, g, n, or ac and they can switch up the frequency depending on the model (Brain). Families can create their own wireless network that can be shared between family members without the use of hooking all their devices up to the modem and can also protect their home network from potential hackers with the use of a TKIP or AES encryption. Businesses can also create a “hotspot” which is an area that has wireless networks for free or at a set fee. This is extremely convenient for commuters that need internet access while they are at work, waiting on a plane, or just sitting at a coffee spot without the need for wires(Cox).
It has been commonly said that the computer can never replace the human brain, for it is humans that created them. Is this a good reason why the computer must be inferior to humans? Even if we just focus on a single creation of man, say the subject of this essay, the computer, there are many ways in which the computer has the edge over man. The computer has the capability to evaluate problems that man can hardly even imagine, let alone approach. Even if a man can calculate the same problems as a computer, the computer can do it faster than he can possibly accomplish. Say this man can calculate as fast as a computer, but can he achieve a 100% rate of accuracy in his calculation? Why do we now go over the human data entry into a computer when a mistake is noticed instead of checking the computer? It is because computers now possess the ability to hold no error in its operation, where mankind has not advanced in this area at all.
We have the microprocessor to thank for all of our consumer electronic devices, because without them, our devices would be much larger. Microprocessors are the feat of generations of research and development. Microprocessors were invented in 1972 by Intel Corporation and have made it so that computers could shrink to the sizes we know today. Before, computers took a room because the transistors or vacuum tubes were individual components. Microprocessors unified the technology on one chip while reducing the costs. Microprocessor technology has been the most important revolution in the computer industry in the past forty years, as microprocessors have allowed our consumer electronics to exist.
In 1975, about one month after the Altair’s debut, IBM introduced the 5100 – dubbed the IBM Portable PC. There were few personal computers available around this time, making the powerful 5100 very attractive as a complete portable system (Sysop, n.d.). At almost 60 pounds and a cost of $9,000-$20,000 however, it was attractive to a small audience. It was designed specifically for professional and scientific problem-solvers. Several years later saw the introduction of what most historians refer to as the first truly portable computer, the Osborne 1 (Bellis, 2005). Released in 1981, the Osborne 1 weighed about 24 pounds and sold for $1795. While the unit itself was still rather bulky, it contained a fold-out keyboard, 5 inch monitor, and two floppy disk drives. Its biggest value however, was the $1500 worth of software that came with it. Unlike the IBM 5100, the Osborne 1 optionally ran on battery packs, enabling true portability. Advances in technology saw the decrease in size of portable computers, as well as an increase in computing power.
The First Generation of Computers The first generation of computers, beginning around the end of World War 2, and continuing until around the year 1957, included computers that used vacuum tubes, drum memories, and programming in machine code. Computers at that time where mammoth machines that did not have the power our present day desktop microcomputers. In 1950, the first real-time, interactive computer was completed by a design team at MIT. The "Whirlwind Computer," as it was called, was a revamped U.S. Navy project for developing an aircraft simulator.
The fist computer, known as the abacus, was made of wood and parallel wires on which beads were strung. Arithmetic operations were performed when the beads were moved along the wire according to “programming” rules that had to be memorized by the user (Soma, 14). The second earliest computer, invented by Blaise Pascal in 1694, was a “digital calculating machine.” Pascal designed this first known digital computer to help his father, who was a tax collector. Pascal’s computer could only add numbers, and they had to be entered by turning dials (Soma, 32). It required a manual process like its ancestor, the abacus. Automation was introduced in the early 1800’s by a mathematics professor named Charles Babbage. He created an automatic calculation machine that was steam powered and stored up to 1000 50-digit numbers. Unlike its two earliest ancestors, Babbage’s invention was able to perform various operations. It relied on cards with holes punched in them, which are called “punch cards.” These cards carried out the programming and storing operations for the machine. Unluckily, Babbage’s creation flopped due to the lack of mechanical precision and the lack of demand for the product (Soma, 46). The machine could not operate efficiently because technology was t adequate to make the machine operate efficiently Computer interest dwindled for many years, and it wasn’t until the mid-1800’s that people became interested in them once again.
The history of the computer dates back all the way to the prehistoric times. The first step towards the development of the computer, the abacus, was developed in Babylonia in 500 B.C. and functioned as a simple counting tool. It was not until thousands of years later that the first calculator was produced. In 1623, the first mechanical calculator was invented by Wilhelm Schikard, the “Calculating Clock,” as it was often referred to as, “performed it’s operations by wheels, which worked similar to a car’s odometer” (Evolution, 1). Still, there had not yet been anything invented that could even be characterized as a computer. Finally, in 1625 the slide rule was created becoming “the first analog computer of the modern ages” (Evolution, 1). One of the biggest breakthroughs came from by Blaise Pascal in 1642, who invented a mechanical calculator whose main function was adding and subtracting numbers. Years later, Gottfried Leibnez improved Pascal’s model by allowing it to also perform such operations as multiplying, dividing, taking the square root.