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History of Computers
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John Napier
In 1614, Scottish mathematician John Napier invented a set of rods known as "Napier's Bones" that could be used to divide, multiple, and calculate square or cube roots. -
Joseph-Maire Jacquard
Joseph Maire Jacquard invented a machine weaving loom that could be told what design to weave through a punch card. That was a huge step in computer programing. -
Charles Babage
Charles came up with the idea of a steam powered machine made of gears and levers that could add and multiply. Though it was never built, the idea opened the door for other inventors to build off the idea. -
Herman Hellerith
For the 1890 census, Herman created a punch card counting machine that was able to count the census in six weeks instead of seven years like the 1880 census. -
Le De Forest
Lee invented the electric tube which made the invention of the electric computer possible. -
Howard H Aiken
Developed at Harvard University, Howard created the first program controlled calculator. -
Colossus
Great Britain invented a code breaking machine for undoing the encryption of Germany's messages. Ten of these machines were built but they were all destroyed in fear of it being used against them. -
Transitor
The transistor was invented by William B. Shockley, Walter H. Brattain, and John Bardeen at Bell Laboratories. The transistor made it so that computers could be less expensive, use less electricity, and produce less heat. This invention marked the beginning of the second generation of computers. -
Floppy Disk
The floppy disk was invented in Tokyo by Dr. Yoshiro Nakamats -
Magnestic Tape
Magnetic tape was first used in UNIVAC 1 as a way of storing information -
Magnestic Core Memory
This was a new way of storing memory -
Dot Matric Printer
This was the invention of the printer so files could be made physical from the computer. -
Jack St. Clair Kilby
Jack created the first integrated circuit. The invention of the integrated circuit led to the invention of the modern computer "chip" which has the power of million of transistors. This marked the beginning of the "third generation" of computers. -
Mouse
The invention of the mouse changed the way people were able to interact with computers. -
RS-232 Serial Interface
This allowed personal computers to be connected to peripheral devices. -
RAM Chip
This created a new way of memory which is still used today. -
Marcian E. Hoff
Marcian created the microprocessor which became the "heart" of a computer.
