Transcript
A Brief History of A Brief History of ComputersComputers
A Brief History of A Brief History of ComputersComputers
By
Bernard John Poole, MSISAssociate Professor of Education and Instructional Technology
University of Pittsburgh at JohnstownJohnstown, PA 15904
Pre-Mechanical Computing:
From Counting on fingersFrom Counting on fingersto pebblesto pebbles
to hash marks on wallsto hash marks on wallsto hash marks on boneto hash marks on boneto hash marks in sandto hash marks in sand
Pre-Mechanical Computing:
From Counting on fingersFrom Counting on fingersto pebblesto pebbles
to hash marks on wallsto hash marks on wallsto hash marks on boneto hash marks on boneto hash marks in sandto hash marks in sand
Interesting thought:Do any species, other than homo sapiens, count?
Mechanical computersMechanical computers
FromFromThe AbacusThe Abacusc. 4000 BCEc. 4000 BCE
to to Charles BabbageCharles Babbage
and his Difference Engine (1812)and his Difference Engine (1812)
Mechanical computers:The Abacus (c. 3000 BCE)
Mechanical computers:The Abacus (c. 3000 BCE)
Napier’s Bones andNapier’s Bones andLogarithms (1617)Logarithms (1617)
Napier’s Bones andNapier’s Bones andLogarithms (1617)Logarithms (1617)
Picture courtesy IBM
Counting on BonesCounting on Bones
Oughtred’s (1621) and Oughtred’s (1621) and Schickard‘s (1623]Schickard‘s (1623]
slide ruleslide rule
Oughtred’s (1621) and Oughtred’s (1621) and Schickard‘s (1623]Schickard‘s (1623]
slide ruleslide rule
Blaise Blaise Pascal’sPascal’s
Pascaline Pascaline (1645)(1645)
Blaise Blaise Pascal’sPascal’s
Pascaline Pascaline (1645)(1645)
Gottfried Wilhelm von Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibnitz’sLeibnitz’s
Stepped Reckoner (1674)Stepped Reckoner (1674)
Gottfried Wilhelm von Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibnitz’sLeibnitz’s
Stepped Reckoner (1674)Stepped Reckoner (1674)
Joseph-Marie Jacquard and his Joseph-Marie Jacquard and his punched card controlled looms punched card controlled looms
(1804)(1804)
Joseph-Marie Jacquard and his Joseph-Marie Jacquard and his punched card controlled looms punched card controlled looms
(1804)(1804)
Preparing the cards with the Preparing the cards with the pattern for the cloth to be pattern for the cloth to be
wovenwoven
Preparing the cards with the Preparing the cards with the pattern for the cloth to be pattern for the cloth to be
wovenwoven
Charles Babbage (1791-Charles Babbage (1791-1871)1871)
The Father of ComputersThe Father of Computers
Charles Babbage (1791-Charles Babbage (1791-1871)1871)
The Father of ComputersThe Father of Computers
Charles Babbage’s Difference Charles Babbage’s Difference EngineEngine
Charles Babbage’s Difference Charles Babbage’s Difference EngineEngine
Charles Babbage’s Analytical Charles Babbage’s Analytical EngineEngine
Charles Babbage’s Analytical Charles Babbage’s Analytical EngineEngine
Lady Augusta AdaCountess of LovelaceLady Augusta AdaCountess of Lovelace
Read Lady Augusta Ada’s translation of Menabrea’sSketch of the Analytical Engine
Electro-mechanical computers
Electro-mechanical computers
FromFromHerman Hollerith’sHerman Hollerith’s
18901890Census Counting MachineCensus Counting Machine
to to Howard AikenHoward Aiken
and the Harvard Mark I (1944)and the Harvard Mark I (1944)
Herman Hollerith and hisHerman Hollerith and hisCensus Tabulating Machine Census Tabulating Machine
(1884)(1884)
Herman Hollerith and hisHerman Hollerith and hisCensus Tabulating Machine Census Tabulating Machine
(1884)(1884)
A closer look at the Census A closer look at the Census Tabulating MachineTabulating Machine
A closer look at the Census A closer look at the Census Tabulating MachineTabulating Machine
The Harvard Mark I (1944)The Harvard Mark I (1944)aka IBM’s Automatic aka IBM’s Automatic Sequence Controlled Sequence Controlled
Calculator (ASCC)Calculator (ASCC)
The Harvard Mark I (1944)The Harvard Mark I (1944)aka IBM’s Automatic aka IBM’s Automatic Sequence Controlled Sequence Controlled
Calculator (ASCC)Calculator (ASCC)
The first computer bugThe first computer bugThe first computer bugThe first computer bugRear Admiral Dr. Grace Murray Hopper
Electronic digital computers
Electronic digital computers
FromFromJohn Vincent Atanasoff’sJohn Vincent Atanasoff’s
19391939Atanasoff-Berry Computer (ABC)Atanasoff-Berry Computer (ABC)
to to the present daythe present day
Alan Turing1912-1954
Alan Turing1912-1954The Turing Machine
AkaThe Universal Machine
1936
John Vincent Atanasoff (1903-1995)John Vincent Atanasoff (1903-1995)
Physics ProfAt
Iowa StateUniversity,Ames, IA
Clifford Berry (1918-1963)Clifford Berry (1918-1963)
PhD studentof
Dr. Atanasoff’s
19391939The Atanasoff-Berry Computer The Atanasoff-Berry Computer
(ABC)(ABC)
19391939The Atanasoff-Berry Computer The Atanasoff-Berry Computer
(ABC)(ABC)
The ABC was the first electronic digital computer, invented by John Vincent Atanasoff
19431943 Bletchley Park’s Colossus Bletchley Park’s Colossus
19431943 Bletchley Park’s Colossus Bletchley Park’s Colossus
The EnigmaMachine
19461946The ENIACThe ENIAC
19461946The ENIACThe ENIAC
John Presper Eckert(1919-1995)andJohn Mauchly(1907-1980)of theUniversity of Pennsylvania Moore School of Engineering
The ENIAC:The ENIAC:Electronic Numerical Electronic Numerical
Integrator and ComputerIntegrator and Computer
The ENIAC:The ENIAC:Electronic Numerical Electronic Numerical
Integrator and ComputerIntegrator and Computer
Programming the ENIACProgramming the ENIACProgramming the ENIACProgramming the ENIAC
ENIAC’s ENIAC’s Wiring!Wiring!ENIAC’s ENIAC’s Wiring!Wiring!
John Von Neumann came up with the bright idea of using part of the computer’s internal memory (called Primary Memory) to “store” the program inside the computer
and have the computer go get the instructions from its own memory, just as
we do with our human brain.
John Von John Von NeumannNeumannJohn Von John Von NeumannNeumann
19511951UnivaUniva
cc
19511951UnivaUniva
ccTypical 1968 prices—EX-cluding maintenance & support!
“What hath God wrought!”(first telegraph message sent by Samuel Morse, 1844, 1844)
Electronic and computing technology quickly progressed—at an ever-accelerating pace—
from vacuum tubes (Lee de Forrest, the audion, 1907, the audion, 1907)to transistors (William Shockley et al. 1947). 1947)
to semiconductors (Jack Kilby & & Robert Noyce, 1958, 1958)to microprocessors (M.E. “Ted” Hoff, 1971, 1971)
to networking and the Internet (Vinton Cerf & & Robert Kahn, 1982, 1982]to the World Wide Web (Tim Berners-Lee, 1991, 1991)
and beyond…
Whatever next?…
“What hath God wrought!”(first telegraph message sent by Samuel Morse, 1844, 1844)
Electronic and computing technology quickly progressed—at an ever-accelerating pace—
from vacuum tubes (Lee de Forrest, the audion, 1907, the audion, 1907)to transistors (William Shockley et al. 1947). 1947)
to semiconductors (Jack Kilby & & Robert Noyce, 1958, 1958)to microprocessors (M.E. “Ted” Hoff, 1971, 1971)
to networking and the Internet (Vinton Cerf & & Robert Kahn, 1982, 1982]to the World Wide Web (Tim Berners-Lee, 1991, 1991)
and beyond…
Whatever next?…
Acknowledgements (continued on next slide)Acknowledgements (continued on next slide)For one of the best written books on the history of computers, check out Engines of the Mind : The Evolution of the Computer from Mainframes to Microprocessors -- by Joel N. Shurkin (Paperback)
A movingly beautiful book on Alan Turing is Alan Turing: the Enigma, by Andrew Hodges
An excellent, readable book on Cryptography is Simon Singh’s THE CODE BOOK. The Secret History of Codes and Code-Breaking
Tutorials on the encryption software PGP (Pretty Good Privacy) can be found at http://www.pitt.edu/~poole/PGPintro.htm
All pictures and some of the information were obtained from various sites on the World Wide Web. Complete list follows:
Abacus: http://qi-journal.com/action.lasso?-Token.SearchID=Abacus&-Response=culture.aspNapier: http://www-groups.dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Napier.html
http://www.maxmon.com/1600ad.htmSlide Rules: http://www.hpmuseum.org/sliderul.htmPascal’s Pascaline: http://www.thocp.net/hardware/pascaline.htmLeibnitz Stepped Reckoner: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stepped_ReckonerJacquard looms: http://history.acusd.edu/gen/recording/jacquard1.html
http://www.deutsches-museum.de/ausstell/meister/e_web.htm
Acknowledgements (continued)Acknowledgements (continued)Charles Babbage: http://ei.cs.vt.edu/~history/Babbage.html
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/on-line/babbage/index.aspLady Augusta Ada, Countess of Lovelace: http://www.well.com/user/adatoole/bio.htm
http://www.fourmilab.ch/babbage/sketch.htmlElectricity: http://www.mediaeng.com/historyelect.html (beautifully written pocket history of
electricity & magnetism)Herman Hollerith: http://www-groups.dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Hollerith.htmlHoward Aiken & The Harvard Mark I: http://www-groups.dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Aiken.html
Alan Turing: http://www-groups.dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Turing.htmlJohn Vincent Atanasoff: http://www.cs.iastate.edu/jva/books/mollenhoff/overview.shtmlBiographies of Atanasoff and Clifford Berry: http://www.scl.ameslab.gov/ABC/Biographies.htmlJ. Presper Eckert: http://www-groups.dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Eckert_John.htmlJohn Mauchly: http://www-groups.dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/~history/Mathematicians/Mauchly.htmlThe patent controversy: http://www.library.upenn.edu/special/gallery/mauchly/jwm7.htmlARPANet: http://www.dei.isep.ipp.pt/docs/arpa.html
Thanks to the following EDTECH listserv colleagues and friends who have reviewed the presentation and provided amendments and additional material for inclusion on the slides and in the notes.
Nancy Head, online instructor, Michigan Virtual High School (MVHS), U.S.A., on the web at www.mivhs.org
Mandi Axmann, Instructional Designer, Open Universities Australia
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