COIS3820H
History of Computing
The Origins of Computing
What is a Computer?
one who computes
a person employed to make calculations in
an observatory, in surveying, etc.
“a programmable machine that can execute a
list of instructions in a well-defined manner”
Webopedia
Requirements
Your computer must be able to:
perform arithmetic operations
make logical decisions (if X is true, do Y)
be programmed
process data into information
display results
store results/data
store programs for reuse
We are describing a stored-program computer
a.k.a. Von Neumann machine
Modern Computers are
assemblies of components
Keyboard
Monitor
Central Processing Unit (CPU)
Random Access Memory (RAM)
Hard Drive
Motherboard
CPU (Microprocessor Chip)
Brain of the computer
Made of Integrated Circuits
(ICs), which have millions of
tiny transistors and other
components
Performs all calculations &
executes all instructions
Example chips for PC:
Intel (Core i7, Pentium IV)
AMD (K-10 and Athlon II)
Inside the Chip
What’s a Giga Hertz (GHz) ?
A unit of measurement for CPU speed (clock
speed)
G (giga) means 1 billion, M (mega) would be 1 million
Hz is for frequency per second
GHz means 1 billion clock cycles per second
CPUs may execute multiple operations each
clock cycle
So what does a 2.8 GHz CPU mean?
2,800,000,000 clock cycles per second
Performs at least 2,800,000,000 operations per
second
Main Memory (RAM)
Stores data for programs currently running
Temporary
empty when power is turned off
Fast access to CPU
What’s a Giga Byte (GB)?
GB measures the amount of data the it can store
G (giga) for 1 billion
M (mega) for 1 million
Data quantities are measured in bytes
1 Bit = stores a single on/off piece of information
1 Byte = 8 bits
1 Kilobyte = 210 (~1,000 bytes)
1 Megabyte = 220 (~1,000,000 bytes)
1 Gigabyte = 230 (~1,000,000,000 bytes)
Hard Drive
Stores data and programs
Permanent storage (theoretically)
when you turn off the computer, it is not emptied
Motherboard
Connects all the components together
In studying the history of
computers, where do we start?
We could go back thousands of years
Mathematical developments
Manufacturing developments
Engineering innovations
The wheel?
The basis of all modern computers is the
binary number system
Count to 8 in binary
0001
0010
0011
0100
0101
0110
0111
1000
What number system do you use?
Decimal (base-10)
Has been in use for thousands of years
Guesses:
first China (13th century BC)
then India (6th century - positional)
then Middle East (Arabic number system)
then Europe (introduced as late as 1200 by Fibonacci)
Why use decimal?
How many fingers do we have?
Not a good system for computers
Computers use Binary
Why?
Much simpler circuits needed for performing
arithmetic
Computers are basically composed of switches –
much like a light switch
How many different signals can we send with a
light switch?
On or Off
Greek Number System (4th Century)
Letter Value Letter Value Letter Value
α´ 1 ι´ 10 ρ´ 100
β´ 2 κ´ 20 σ´ 200
γ´ 3 λ´ 30 τ´ 300
δ´ 4 µ´ 40 υ´ 400
ε´ 5 ν´ 50 φ´ 500
ϝ´ or ϛ´ or στ´ 6 ξ´ 60 χ´ 600
ζ´ 7 ο´ 70 ψ´ 700
η´ 8 π´ 80 ω´ 800
θ´ 9 ϟ´ 90 ϡ´ 900
Some factoids
4th Century AD
Mayan astronomer-priests begin using a positional
number system based on base 20
1718
King of Sweden requests Emanuel Swedenborg develop
a new number system to replace decimal and octal was
born.
1732
Leonhard Euler, Swiss mathematician
used binary notation in correspondence
1854
George Boole, British mathematician
An Investigation of the Laws of Thought, on Which Are
Founded the Mathematical Theories of Logic and
Probabilities
Boolean Algebra