Computers Essay, Research Paper

A “Chip” Off the Old Abacus Having always needed an easier way to calculate, Mankind has given rise to some fascinating and often bizarre inventions. One of the earliest and possibly best known creations of a mathematical devise is the abacus, created nearly 5000 years ago. Thomas H. Crowley recognized the abacus as, “one of the earliest landmarks in the development of the computer”(37). This crude devise, consisted up of a rectangular frame with rows of beads to represent numbers, which was then divided into two rows. The five beads on the bottom represent numbers one through five and the beads on the top represent numbers six through ten. This wonderfully simple device in the hands of a seasoned user was able to outperform electric calculators even as late as the 1940s. J. M. Pullan described the abacus as, “ingenious . . . easily followed and understood”(20). Until the 1600s, computational tools, such as the abacus, were simple and moving parts were at a minimum. Since then, computers have developed into complex powerful user friendly tools which are now being used around the globe. Starting in the late1600s, inventors began using gears and clogs to build more complex calculators. One of these inventions, named the Pascaline, was created by Blaise Pascal in1644. Fellow inventor Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz affirmed that “Pascal’s machine is an example of the most fortunate genius”(qtd. in Joel Shurkin 35). Its oversized cigar-box like shape camouflaged the complex arrangement of gears that resided within. Unlike the abacus, it was the first machine in which the operator did not have to do all the work to compute numbers since the gears and clogs handled the arithmetic. Another prominent and creative inventor was Charles Babbage. Robert Slater observes that “Babbage was a man possessed of one of the great inventive minds of the nineteenth century”(4). His invention, the Difference Engine, first conceived in1822, is considered to be the worlds first computer. Unfortunately, due to the fact Jones 2that manufacturing techniques were not precise enough at that time to construct such a complex machine, the invention was never completed. This machine was significant because it introduced the concept of memory to the computer. For example, after the apparatus would have solved an equation, that answer could be stored on a punch card and used later as part of a new equation. All the previous advances in computer technology paved the way for more complicated forms of computers that eventually began to resemble the ones we are familiar with today. The mid 1900s were very exciting times for computer engineers and other inventive minds who were forging ahead at breakneck speed. Located in the physics lab at Harvard University, was one of the largest computers ever built, known as the Mark I. At fifty-five feet long and eight feet high, its dimensions were staggering. Christopher Evens remarked that “Nothing like it had ever been built before, and nothing like it would ever be built again”(73). The navy used this monster to calculate the trajectory needed for naval ships to hit military targets, such as enemy vessels. The Mark I, built in 1943, significantly lowered the amount of time needed for the necessary calculations, thereby increasing the success of American ships during navel confrontations. However, its creator, Howard Hathaway Aiken, elected not to use vacuum tubes, instead using electromagnetic relays which were slower but more reliable. Even though the Mark I was obsolete only after a few years, R. Wade Cole recognized that the it was a very practical machine and influenced future technological advancements by spawning public interest in computers(qtd. In Nikolaieff 122). Even though the Mark I didn’t utilize vacuum tube technology, other inventors recognized its potential. The vacuum tube, not yet outdated in the 1940s, was being incorporated into some of the most famous and ground breaking computers of all times. During 1946, engineers John William Mauchly and John Presper Eckert finished construction on their machine named the Jones 3Electronic Numerical Integrator and Calculator, or ENIAC. Isaac Asimov recognizes this as, “the worlds first electronic computer”(33). Even though the complex computer consisted of 18000 vacuum tubes, 6000 switches, and more than 500 miles of wire, the ENIAC was able to multiply the number 97,367 by itself 5000 times in less than one half of one second. One drawback of the ENIAC was the fact that it possessed no onboard memory which would allow for an operation to run without prepping the computer beforehand, which would have saved a significant amount of time. What Mauchly and Eckert did to solve this problem was to use magnetic tape spools to store information on their next computer. This new innovation was implemented into their new computer labeled Universal Automatic Computer. Paul E. Ceruzzi observes that “The stored-program principle was a key to the UNIVAC’s success”(21). The UNIVAC, as it was known, was the first computer to be sold commercially and General Electric was the first company to acquire one. A total of fifty units were eventually sold, a substantial amount, given it’s $1,000,000 price tag. But because of its tremendous size, lack of speed, and

overall substantial price distribution was limited to all but the most profitable companies and government offices. That all began to change with the invention of the transistor. The transistor was a better choice for use in computers then the vacuum tube for two reasons. First, its lack of a needed vacuum environment in which to work, like the vacuum tube, allowed its size to dramatically shrink. Second, vacuum tubes gave off a tremendous amount of heat and used a massive amount of energy, whereas, the transistor generated almost no heat and was extremely energy efficient. A transistor is a switch, just like the vacuum tube, but is made out of different materials, such as germanium or silicon. It was created at Bell Laboratories in 1947 by William Shockley, John Bardeen, and Walter Brattain. They later earned the Nobel Prize in 1956 for their efforts. Manufacturing companies soon there after began experimenting with multilevel Jones 4transistors named integrated circuits. These integrated circuit almost immediately rendered the vacuum tube obsolete. The integrated circuit soon gave birth to the microchip as we know it today and ushered an era of unprecedented job growth which seems unstoppable. Thanks to an overwhelming need for computer professionals, entry level salaries and long term income continue to increase. Chris Weigant observes that entry level employees can expect to earn close to $40,000 in the first year and exceptional employees can earn over $100,000 after just a few years.(13). Also, Elberts and Gisler had this to say about the long term advancement of computing, “Some areas within the industry will explode and grow at absolutely fantastic rates in the future” (115). Thanks to greater consumer confidence and growing trust in the Internet, computer processionals knowledgeable with E-Commerce have seen spectacular job growth. Finally, with all the intense competition for skilled workers, employers are more apt to include attractive benefit plans to lure employees to join their team. Some of the better employers include company cars, free cell phones, and 401K matching. Computers have proven time and again that its presence demands attention and society has given it just that. Although computers and adding machines stared life as small simple tools almost 5000 years ago, there impact on society throughout time has been significant. Since the 1970s, a large portion of the population have had access to a computers and have learned how to use them to their advantage. This is evident when online providers such as America Online have over 21 million documented subscribers and continue to gain hundreds new customers daily. Also, there will be a steady need for new software applications in business, science, and personal markets. As people become more diversified and populations grow, new software will need to be written to accommodate this increase. Finally, the impact of the computer on the world economy has been substantial and is sure to have a lasting impression for generations to come. Since the Jones 5computer began it’s transformation from the abacus to personal computer almost 5000 years ago, it has blossomed into a tool which the world has embraced with open arms. As with the abacus, need breeds invention, and therefor, as time slowly crawls forward, it will be agonizing waiting for the new inventions just awaiting to be introduced to the world. A “Chip” Off the Old Abacus By Sean Jones Professor Birmingham Communications I Section 25, M 28 November 2000 Ceruzzi, Paul E. A History of Modern Computing. London: MIT Press, 1998.Diebold, John, ed. The World of the Computer. New York: Random House, 1973.Evans, Christopher. The Making of the Micro: A History of the Computer. 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