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Computer: Computing, Which Were Very Successful and Survived For Centuries Until The Advent of

A computer is a programmable device that can perform arithmetic and logical operations. It consists of a processing element like a CPU and some form of memory. Peripheral devices allow information to be input from and output to external sources. While early computers filled entire rooms, modern computers use integrated circuits and occupy a fraction of the space while being millions to billions times more capable. Simple computers now fit into mobile devices, while personal computers are icons of the information age. However, embedded computers in devices are now the most numerous. The history of modern computers involves both automated calculation and programmability, though no single device is considered the earliest computer.

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80 views

Computer: Computing, Which Were Very Successful and Survived For Centuries Until The Advent of

A computer is a programmable device that can perform arithmetic and logical operations. It consists of a processing element like a CPU and some form of memory. Peripheral devices allow information to be input from and output to external sources. While early computers filled entire rooms, modern computers use integrated circuits and occupy a fraction of the space while being millions to billions times more capable. Simple computers now fit into mobile devices, while personal computers are icons of the information age. However, embedded computers in devices are now the most numerous. The history of modern computers involves both automated calculation and programmability, though no single device is considered the earliest computer.

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ponnarrasu
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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COMPUTER

A computer is a general purpose device that can be programmed to carry out a finite set of arithmetic or logical operations. Since a sequence of operations can be readily changed, the computer can solve more than one kind of problem. Conventionally, a computer consists of at least one processing element, typically a central processing unit (CPU) and some form of memory. The processing element carries out arithmetic and logic operations, and a sequencing and control unit that can change the order of operations based on stored information. Peripheral devices allow information to be retrieved from an external source, and the result of operations saved and retrieved. The first electronic digital computers were developed between 1940 and 1945. Originally they were the size of a large room, consuming as much power as several hundred modern personal computers (PCs).[1] In this era mechanical analog computers were used for military applications. Modern computers based on integrated circuits are millions to billions of times more capable than the early machines, and occupy a fraction of the space. [2] Simple computers are small enough to fit into mobile devices, and mobile computers can be powered by small batteries. Personal computers in their various forms are icons of the Information Age and are what most people think of as computers. However, the embedded computers found in many devices from MP3 players to fighter aircraft and from toys to industrial robots are the most numerous. The history of the modern computer begins with two separate technologies, automated calculation and programmability. However no single device can be identified as the earliest computer, partly because of the inconsistent application of that term. A few devices are worth mentioning though, like some mechanical aids to computing, which were very successful and survived for centuries until the advent of the electronic calculator, like the Sumerian abacus, designed around 2500 BC[4] of which a descendant won a speed competition against a modern desk calculating machine in Japan in 1946,[5] the slide rules, invented in the 1620s, which were carried on five Apollo space missions, including to the moon[6] and arguably the astrolabe and the Anti kythera mechanism, an ancient astronomical analog computer built by the Greeks around 80 BC.[7] The Greek mathematician Hero of Alexandria (c. 1070 AD) built a mechanical theater which performed a play lasting 10 minutes and was operated by a complex system of ropes and drums that might be considered to be a means of deciding which parts of the mechanism performed which actions and when.[8] This is the essence of programmability. In most cases, computer instructions are simple: add one number to another, move some data from one location to another, send a message to some external device, etc.
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