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History and Evolution of Computers
Composition on the evolution of computers
History of computer development
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Computer programming, now a very contemporary work, can date back into the 1800s with the creation of the first analytical machines (Moore). Later, developing into complex algorithms that are used everywhere, we see a piece of modern technology. The history of computer programming, while long, is a very interesting topic that can be easily understood and related back to great inventions that helped change the course of history over the years. Starting with the microchip and leading into devices the size of a pencil that contain more processing power than the room sized computers that were widely used in the late 1960s. The first computer algorithms can be found dating back to the 1800s were created by a woman named Ada Lovelace (Moore). Lovelace essentially created the standard of what all computers today run on, and provided the base for other computer algorithms. “Ada Lovelace was born in London, England on December 10, 1815” (Moore). Lovelace contributed abundant work towards the invention of the Analytical Engine, or an ancient calculator (Moore). Lovelace’s work was spoken about in an Italian Mathematician’s memoir, which became her source of reputation (Moore). Entering the 1900s, the first electronic computers were invented and constructed. Although many of these machines were the size of structures they were extraordinary achievements that led the world into the technologically advanced state that it is today. Many of the first computers were built to run off of binary code, which is the use of zeroes and ones in order to process information (Bergin). Complication with this binary system led into the development of early programming languages which were used to simplify the use of computers and process data in a suffici... ... middle of paper ... ...omputing." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. . Bergin, Thomas J., and Richard G. Gibson. "History of Programming Languages." – Free Download EBook. Addison-Wesley, 1996. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. . Marshall, Donnis. Programming Microsoft Visual C# 2008: The Language. Redmond: Microsoft, 2008. Print. Moore, Dorris L. "Ada Lovelace: Founder of Scientific Computing." Ada Lovelace: Founder of Scientific Computing. Sdsc, n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. . Raik-Allen, Simon. "A Brief History of Computer Programming Languages. Which Do You Use?" ABC Technologies. N.p., 11 Jan. 2013. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. .
Specific Purpose: To inform the class about Ada Lovelace. She is considered to be one of the pioneers of computer science and modern technology.
If the nineteenth century was an era of the Industrial revolution in Europe, I would say that computers and Information Technology have dominated since the twentieth century. The world today is a void without computers, be it healthcare, commerce or any other field, the industry won’t thrive without Information Technology and Computer Science. This ever-growing field of technology has aroused interest in me since my childhood. After my twelfth grade, the inherent ardor I held for Computer Science motivated me to do a bachelors degree in Information Technology. Programming and Math, a paragon of logic and reasoning, have always been my favorite subjects since childhood.
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.
Later in her life, Augustus De Morgan, a brilliant mathematician becomes her main tutor. According to Rich Holmes’s book “Enchantress of abstraction: Richard Holmes re-examines the legacy of Ada Lovelace, mathematician and computer pioneer”
In today’s world, computers are the go to tool for every aspect of modern life. We use computers to have a better control of the necessities we need to live. Hopper’s design creation of Flow-Matic was the gateway for a revolution in computer technology advancements. During her youth, women served roles in other areas of the workforce, not in computers. Hopper faced a secluded field in which women had no importance at the time. Due to her hard work, dedication, mathematical abilities, and love for machines, she was vital for the development of code used for computers, in which she respectfully earned the nickname of Queen of Coding. The 20th Century visionary in computers, Grace Murray Hopper, single handedly pioneered the first computer language compiler, a feat so extraordinary, that we still use
Augusta Ada Byron the Countess of Lovelace, known best as Ada Lovelace. She took the mathematics and computer societies by storm, Ada is a natural gifted mathematician and she is also considered to have written the instructions for the first ever computer program in the 1800s. She introduced a ton of computer concepts and was considered the first computer programmer. Ada Lovelace, born December 10, 1815, in Piccadilly, Middlesex (London), England, is the only daughter of the famous Poet Lord George Gordon Byron and Lady Anne Isabella Milbanke Byron. Her parents split up not too long after Ada was born, her father left England soon after the separation and never saw Ada again, he died when Ada was 8 years old in Greece.
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.
The field of Computer Science is based primarily on computer programing. Programming is the writing of computer programs using letters and numbers to make "code". The average computer programer will write at least a million lines of code in his or her lifetime. But even more important than writting code, a good programer must be able to solve problems and think logicaly.
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.
Augusta Ada Lovelace, known as Ada Lovelace was born in what is now, Piccadilly Terrace, London, on December 10, 1815 (Ada King, countess of Lovelace). Ada Lovelace was a brilliant mathematician who later was introduced to Charles Babbage, whom she started working with. Lovelace translated an article in English and expressed her comments. Ada Lovelace is considered to be the first computer programmer in the 1800’s, and the first female to have written instructions for computer programming (Ada Lovelace Biography Mathematician, Computer Programmer (1815–1852)).
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.
Computer programming can as well be defined as a process that leads from an original formulation of a computer problem to execute problems. Computer programming is also referred to as programming. It encompasses other activities such as understanding, analysis and generally solving problems that result in algorithm, verifying the algorithm requirements and coding algorithm in a target program language. The program also involves the implementation of the build system and managing derived artifacts like computer programs machine codes. Most often, the algorithm is represented in human-parseable languages such as Java, Python, Smalltalk among others.
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.
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.