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Abacus—First Calculating Device
The first step towards computing was the invention of the
Abacus around 3000 years ago in China. It is a wooden frame
with beads on parallel wires. It is used to do simple calculations
like addition and subtraction. This device is used to calculate
numbers at a fast speed.
Abacus
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Abacus is also used in schools as an aid in teaching the numeral system.
Pascaline Adding Machine
In 1642, a mathematician, Blaise Pascal
invented the calculating machine called
Pascaline adding machine when he
was 19 years old. The numbers were fed
into the machine by dialling them on
the wheels. This device is believed to be
Pascaline Blaise Pascal
the first mechanical calculator in the
world. This machine was capable of performing only addition and subtraction.
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In 1617, John Napier invented the calculating device called Napier bones. It was
able to perform addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.
Leibniz Step Reckoner
In 1672, a mathematician, Gottfried Wilhelm
Leibniz expanded Blaise Pascal’s ideas and
invented the digital mechanical calculator called
‘Step Reckoner’. It was the first calculator that
could perform all four arithmetic operations i.e., Leibniz Step Reckoner
addition, subtraction, multiplication and division.
Difference Engine and Analytical Engine
In 1822, a mathematician, Charles Babbage developed a
steam-driven calculating machine, that was the size of a
room which he called the Difference Engine. The Difference
Engine consisted of a series of gears and levers that could
Charles Babbage
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