Power of the Computer

Computer technology has revolutionized the way we live our everyday lives. In 1613 through to to the mid 20th century, a computer was a person who did calculations, by the end of the 19th century the term computer was beginning to take the meaning of a machine that did calculations.

In 1623 Charles Babbage designed a machine that was the first fully programmable machine called the Analytical Engine but was never finished. In the late 1880′s Herman Hollerith’s machine readable media was invented which recorded information on punched cards ( two other machines were invented for use with the machine readable media, the Tabulator and the keypunch) these machines were used in the 1890 US census. Hollerith’s company would become the core of IBM in 1896. By the end of the 19th century the practicality of these machines was realized and led the way for Punched Card, Boolean Algebra, Vacuum Tube and the Teleprinter. Up until mid 1900 the first analog computers were created and in large number, they were either electrical, mechanical or hydraulic, the mechanical versions were used for gunfire control in WWII and the Korean wars. The drawback with these machines was that they were not programmable and not very versatile or accurate. In 1936 Alan Turning came up with concept of the Turning Machine and is considered the father of the modern computer. The first working computer to be controlled by a program was built in 1941 by Konrad Zuse and in 1955 built a computer with magnetic storage.

The recognized creator of the digital computer was George Stibitz, and was a relay based calculator and was the first to use binary circuits. The 1950′s the vacuum tube electronic elements were replaced by transistors in the 1060′s which were smaller, cheaper and a lot more reliable, the 1970′s saw integrated circuit technology (the micro chip) and this led to the design of the micro processor to perform program functions.

At the end of the 70′s many electrical products, the video recorder  and washing machine being some contained microcontrollers, small computers to make the machine programmable. The 80′s saw the first home computers and later the personal computer. With the invention laptops and the World Wide Web (by Tim Berners-Lee in 1989) computers have given us the power to instantly send messages and gain information on the move.

How will computer technology evolve in the future?

So many everyday operations today rely on computers, from power stations to banking, transport to cooking out meals. There aren’t many things that don’t contain some sort of computer. If the computers were to suddenly stop working, the world would be in an instant case of mass panic, without computers the world we know and take for granted would disintegrate before our eyes. Technology is an amazing achievement but are we now too dependent on it?