Early Computing: Crash Course Computer Science #1

abacus

An early device for computing that helps add and subtract numbers; invented in Mesopotamia around 2500 BCE.

transistor

A fundamental component in electronic devices that can amplify or switch electronic signals.

Difference Engine

A mechanical device proposed by Charles Babbage that could approximate polynomials.

Analytical Engine

A proposed general-purpose computer by Charles Babbage that could perform any computation using a sequence of operations.

Ada Lovelace

Regarded as the first computer programmer for her work on the Analytical Engine.

Hollerith’s tabulating machine

An electro-mechanical machine that used punch cards to rapidly process census data.

polynomials

Mathematical expressions involving variables and coefficients that describe relationships between several variables.

mechanization

The process of using machines to perform tasks that were previously done manually.

electronic age

A period characterized by the rise of computers and digital technology, transforming nearly every aspect of life.

Range Tables

Pre-computed tables used by militaries to calculate firing angles for artillery shells based on environmental conditions.