An Introduction to the World of Computers - I

The Computer - An object that was unheard of 200 years ago but is used more than any other machine in this day and age. One must wonder how it came to be that society is now dependent on this machine.

Wikipedia defines a computer as - "A computer is a programmable machine that can perform arithmetic and logical operations.".

But what does this mean exactly? Let us break it down, there are three key words in this definition - programmable, machine, and operations.

• Programmable - A computer can be programmed i.e. it can be given instructions to carry out a task.

• Machine - A device having a unique purpose, that augments or replaces human effort for the accomplishment of certain tasks.

• Operation - The action of functioning, in this case performing arithmetical and logical operations.

As the definition suggests computers were created in order to help humans in their various tasks. Early computers were meant to be used only for calculations. 

In the 1800s, Charles Babbage who is considered to be the "father of the computer" designed and partly built the Analytical Engine which is generally considered the first computer. It could be programmable to perform various calculations

In 1843 mathematician Ada Lovelace wrote in her notes an algorithm for the Analytical Engine, how the machine could be used to follow a program to calculate Bernoulli numbers. For this, she has been called the first computer programmer.

The Analytical Engine would have been the first real computer had Babbage not run into implementation problems. Due to the technology at the time the machine was not able to reach its true potential. However, Babbage's Analytical Engine was an innovation that kickstarted the development of more complex computers.

Charles Babbage's Analytical Engine

The more famous story about computers is the one of Alan Turing and his machine that cracked the Enigma code.

Alan Turing

Alan Turing was an English mathematician and codebreaker who is known as the father of computer science. During World War 2 he helped the British government to develop technology to decipher Germany's secret communications.

He also created the Turing Test which is a deceptively simple method of determining whether a machine can demonstrate human intelligence: If a machine can engage in a conversation with a human without being detected as a machine, it has demonstrated human intelligence.

Thus these great minds had helped build the foundation for modern computers. Without their inventions and innovations, we would not be here using various computers in our day-to-day lives.