The Abacus
What was the abacus mainly used for?
To do maths / solve maths questions
Where was the Antikythera mechanism found?
On the sea floor near the Greek island of Antikythera
Who was Charles Babbage?
The man with the idea of the modern computer (designed the difference engine)
In which decade did modern computers start becoming smaller and faster?
From the 1950s
Who often uses abacuses to learn maths today?
Children (especially to learn maths)
What did scientists later discover it was used for?
To find out the positions of the sun, moon, and stars
Who was Ada Lovelace?
The first computer programmer (had the idea for “software”)
What is one of the worst problems for modern computers?
Computer viruses
How is the abacus different from modern computers?
It is simple and not like modern computers, but the idea is the same (to solve maths faster).
Why do some people call it the world’s earliest “computer”?
Because it could calculate astronomical positions like a computer.
Who worked on the first digital computer, Colossus?
Alan Turing
What advice does the text give about downloading from the internet?
Be careful with what you download.