Chapter 1 Flashcards
What is the definition of a computer?
A data processing machine that can store, process data, and give output based on logic supplied by the user.
What is the stored-program concept?
The concept of storing alterable instructions within the machine itself to direct automatic processing steps.
Who introduced the stored-program concept?
Mathematician John Von Neumann.
What are the two main components of a computer system?
- Hardware
- Software
What does hardware refer to in a computer system?
The physical parts of the computer system that can be seen and handled.
What does software refer to in a computer system?
Various categories of programs (instructions) that run on the hardware system.
What was the earliest mechanical aid to calculation?
The Abacus or Bead Frame.
When and where did the Abacus originate?
In China in the 7th Century B.C.
What does the Abacus consist of?
Beads strewn on iron rods, with positional values represented by rods.
Who invented the first true adding machine?
Blaise Pascal in 1642.
What motivated Blaise Pascal to invent the adding machine?
To reduce the numerical labor involved in his father’s work.
Who invented three calculating machines independently of Pascal?
Sir Samuel Morland.
What significant invention did Gottfried Leibniz create in 1671?
A calculator with sliding gears for multiplication and division.
Who attempted to design an automatic machine for calculation?
Charles Babbage.
What was the name of Charles Babbage’s first machine?
Difference Engine.
Why was Babbage’s Difference Engine never completed?
Babbage’s ideas developed far beyond the original concept.
What was the name of Babbage’s second invention?
Analytical Engine.
What powered the Analytical Engine?
A steam engine.
How was input provided to the Analytical Engine?
Via punched cards.
What capabilities did the Analytical Engine have for output?
A printer, a curve plotter, and a bell.
What arithmetic operations could the Analytical Engine perform?
- Addition
- Comparisons
- Optionally square roots
What essential feature did the reports by Von Neumann and his collaborators emphasize?
The idea of stored program.
What distinguished a true computer from a calculator according to the Neumann report?
The ability for one part of a program to perform arithmetic upon and modify another part of the same program.
What was the name of the prototype machine built in 1948?
The prototype machine at Manchester.
Which companies joined in producing computers in commercial quantities?
- IBM
- Remington Rand Corporation
- ICL
