Basic History of Computing

Al-Khwarizmi

Al-Khwarizmi written in 830,

Hisab al-jabr w’al-muqabalathe al-jabr; in the title we get algebra

developed the concept of the algorithm

classification system for quadratics

introduced the decimal system

rules for solving equations and doing geometry.

Pascaline

Pascaline mechanism to

calculate with 8 figures and carrying of 10's , 100's, and 1000's etc

ten-teeth wheel accessible to be turned directly by a person's hand

eight windows on the top of it

series of numbers was entered

cumulative sum was obtained

Jacquard loom

complex patterns could be automated

relied on stiff, pasteboard cards with various patterns of punched holes

shuttle a card was placed in the path of the rods.

pattern of holes in the card determined which rods could pass through

Jacquard loom

Punch Card system of Jacquard loom

Lady Ada

Lady Ada mathematical talents

early in life friends was Augustus

De Morgan, Charles Babbage, Mary Somerville

received tutoring in mathematics and music

known as one of the founders of scientific computing

1828, she produced the design for a flying machine

writings anticipated that computers would be used for practical and scientific purposes and also to generate music and graphics

Babbage

Babbage known to some as the

"Father of Computing" contributions to the

basic design of the computer through his Analytical machine

Difference Engine was a special purpose device intended for the production of tables

cowcatcher, dynamometer, standard railroad

gauge occulting lights for

lighthouses Greenwich time

signals heliograph

ophthalmoscope

Analytical Engine

Analytical Engine a mechanical, modern general purpose

computer design was correct ,the engine would

have worked, precision required for the gears not possible

comparable computers came into existence about 100 years later.

programming language akin to modern day assembly languages

Hollerith Tabulator

Hollerith Tabulator built for the U.S. Census Bureau. first used in compiling the 1890

Census work became the basis of the IBM

Punched Card System used simple clock-like counting

devices

Z-1

Z-1 first freely

programmable computer

completed in 1938

contained all parts of modern computer; control unit, memory, micro sequences, floating point logic

Turing

Turing While at Princeton played with idea

of constructing a computer in 1938, built an analogue

mechanical device work at the Government Code and

Cypher School at Bletchley Park

ENIAC

ENIAC The world's first

electronic digital computer was developed by Army Ordnance to compute World War II ballistic firing tables

John W. Mauchly and J. P. Eckert, Jr

weighed over thirty tons.

19,000 vacuum tubes, 1,500 relays

hundreds of thousands of resistors, capacitors, and inductors consumed almost 200 kilowatts of electrical power.

ENIAC (cont’d)

make the electronics simple and reliable

achieved by utilizing vacuum tubes in a minimum of basic circuit combinations

Grace Hopper

Grace Hopper assigned to Bureau of

Ordnance Computation Project at Harvard

consultant and lecturer for the United States Naval Reserve

received awards for pioneering applications programming

encouraged programmers to collect and share common portions of programs

believed computer programs could be written in English