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2600 BCE
Chinese Abacus
The first object that could compute mathematical calculations -
Period: to
Ada Lovelace
Considered the first computer programmer. She wrote the Analytical Engine, that was never built and realized that the computer could follow a series of simple instructions, a program, to perform a complex calculation. -
Charles Babbage and the Difference Engine
Funded and commissioned by the British Government, this machine was supposed to be able to perform basic mathematical calculations like polynomial functions. -
New Ideas
During the time designing the Difference Engine, Babbage thought of ways he could improve this machine to perform other kinds of calculations. -
Funding Runs Out
Commission for the Difference Engine from the government runs out. -
Period: to
Analytical Engine the First Computer
These new ideas sprouted into a new machine called the Analytical Engine which would be able to perform any mathematical calculation making it the first design for a general-purpose computer. (Worked on until his death in 1871) -
Period: to
Grace Hopper
One of the first computer programmers to work on the Harvard Mark I. -
Official Machine
Henry Babbage constructs part of Charles Babbage's Analytical Engine and it could now perform basic mathematical calculations. -
Period: to
Alan Turing
Developed the idea for the Universal Turing Machine, the basis for the first computer. -
Alan Turing's Turing Machine Theory
First Universal computing machine -
Konrad Zuse's Z1
First binary digital computer -
ENIAC
First Electronic general purpose computer -
UNIVAC
First modern computer -
Period: to
Mark Dean
Developed the color PC monitor, the Industry Standard Architecture system bus and the first gigahertz chip. -
First Portable Computer from IBM
Weighed 55lbs with a 5in display and 64KB of memory -
Apple's Macintosh
Had the ability to “talk” to a drawing application that was able to produce sophisticated images. -
The World Wide Web
The world’s first website and server went live. -
Internet of Things
The merging of physical and virtual worlds is known as the internet of things where many things are beginning to be connected to the internet. (2000's)