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Charles Babbage

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Timeline of the Television

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Fun Facts about the Invention of the Car

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Fun Facts about the Invention of the Telephone

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Fun Facts About the Invention of the Telephone

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Fun Facts about the Invention of the Television

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Fun Facts About the Invention of the Television

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Fun Facts about the Invention of the Computer

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Fun Facts About the Invention of the Computer

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How far do you live from school? Do you get a ride to school from a friend or family member? Or do you ride a school bus? What about the grocery store where you buy your food? Is it just around the corner or several miles away? How about the fields where you practice soccer? Or the library?

Think about the places you go to throughout a typical week. Are all of these within walking distance? Or are you like most kids today who spend a significant amount of time traveling in a car to go the places you need to go?

Try to imagine living your life without an automobile. How would your daily and weekly routines have to change if you had to walk everywhere or ride a horse or a bicycle? It's hard to imagine, isn't it?

That's what life was like for most people around the turn of the 20th century. Before automobiles, people didn't nearly as much as they do today. People tended to only for special occasions and, even then, only relatively-short distances.

The invention of the automobile changed all that. In many ways, the automobile revolutionized society and people to the world around them with greater freedom. The world would certainly not look the way it does today if the automobile had not come along when it did.

The invention of the automobile cannot actually be attributed to one single individual. Instead, the automobile was invented in many stages and pieces by many people all over the world over the course of several decades. Experts estimate that over 100,000 patents are related to the invention of the modern automobile.

The first theoretical plans for a motorized vehicle date back to Leonardo da Vinci and Isaac Newton. Those plans didn't come to fruition in their lifetimes, though. The first self-propelled road vehicle was a steam-driven military tractor invented in 1769 by a French engineer and mechanic named Nicolas Joseph Cugnot. It traveled at a 2.5 miles per hour and was used to haul artillery by the French Army.

Steam power turned out to be less than for automobile design, because the engines were too heavy. The next step forward in automobile design came in the 1830s when Robert Anderson of Scotland developed the first electric automobiles powered by rechargeable batteries. In addition to being slow and expensive, these early electric vehicles needed to stop frequently to recharge the batteries.

The automobile as we know it today came into existence when Germans Gottlieb Daimler and Karl Benz invented the first gasoline-powered vehicles in the mid-1880s. Many other inventors built upon the work of Daimler and Benz (and countless others) and the gasoline-powered car developed quickly at the end of the 19th century.

By the early 1900s, gasoline-powered cars began to outsell all the other types of motor vehicles. Despite their great expense, there was definitely a demand for them. Entrepreneurs quickly recognized the need for industrial production and more affordable alternatives.

Ransome Eli Olds built the first mass-produced automobile in the United States: the 1901 Curved Dash Oldsmobile. Olds invented the basic idea of the assembly line and is also with launching the Detroit-area automotive .

Henry Ford improved the assembly line system by installing the first belt-style assembly line in his Ford Motor Company in Highland Park, Michigan. Ford's assembly process helped to reduce costs and make vehicles more affordable . His Ford Model T was a success, selling 15 million vehicles by 1927.

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Today's Wonder of the Day should really rev up your engine!

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1. Who invented this invention?

2. How does this invention work?

3.  How has this invention had a positive impact on your community? How does it make life easier?

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History of Computers | All About Computers | Tynker

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A computer is a machine that accepts data as input, processes that data using programs, and outputs the processed data as information. Many computers can store and retrieve information using hard drives. Computers can be connected together to form networks, allowing connected computers to communicate with each other.

Characteristics

The principal characteristics of a computers are that they respond to a specific instruction set in a well-defined manner and they can execute a prerecorded list of instructions called a program.

Modern computers can do billions of calculations in a second. Being able to calculate many times per second allows modern computers to multi-task, which means they can do many different tasks at the same time. Computers do many different jobs where automation is useful. Some examples are controlling traffic lights, vehicle , security systems, washing machines and digital televisions.

Computers can be designed to do almost anything with information.

Computers are used to control large and small machines which in the past were controlled by humans. Most people have used a personal computer in their home or at work. They are used for things such as calculation, listening to music, reading an article, writing etc.

Humans control computers with user interfaces. Input devices include keyboards, computer mice, buttons, and touch screens. Some computers can also be controlled with voice commands, hand gestures or even brain signals through electrodes implanted in the brain or along nerves.

Computer programs are designed or written by computer programmers. A few programmers write programs in the computer's own language called machine code. Most programs are written using a programming language like C, C++, Java. These programming languages are more like the language with which one talks and writes every day. The compiler translates the user's instructions into binary code (machine code) that the computer will understand and do what is needed.

History of computers

Automation

Most humans have a problem with math. Try doing this 584 × 3,220 in your head. It is hard to remember all the steps! People made tools to help them remember where they were in a math problem.

The other problem people have is that they have to do the same problem over and over and over again. A cashier had to work out what the change was every day in her head or with a piece of paper. That took a lot of time and made mistakes. So, people made calculators that did those same things over and over. This part of computer history is called the "history of automated calculation," which is a fancy phrase for "the history of machines that make it easy for us to do this same math problem over and over without making mistakes."

The abacus, the slide rule, the astrolabe and the Antikythera mechanism (which dates from about 150-100 BC) are examples of automated calculation machines.

Programming

People do not want a machine that would do the same thing over and over again. For example, a music box is a machine that plays the same music over and over again. Some people wanted to be able to tell their machine to do different things. For example, they wanted to tell the music box to play different music every time. They wanted to be able to program the music box- to order the music box to play different music. This part of computer history is called the "history of programmable machines" which is a fancy phrase for "The history of machines that I can order to do different things if I know how to speak their language."

One of the first examples of this was built by Hero of Alexandria (c. 10-70 AD). He built a mechanical theater which performed a play lasting 10 minutes and was operated by a complex system of ropes and drums. These ropes and drums were the language of the machine- they told what the machine did and when. Some people argue that this is the first programmable machine.

Historians disagree on which early machines are "computers". Many say the "castle clock", an astronomical clock invented by Al-Jazari in 1206, is the first known programmable analog computer. The length of day and night could be adjusted every day in order to account for the changing lengths of day and night throughout the year. Some count this daily adjustment as computer programming.

The computing era

Charles Babbage wanted to make a similar machine that could calculate. He called it "The Analytical Engine". Because Babbage did not have enough money and always changed his design when he had a better idea, he never built his Analytical Engine.

Because of machines like this, new ways of talking to these machines were invented, and new types of machines were invented, and eventually the computer as we know it was born.

Analog and digital computers

These analog computers used analog circuits, which made them very hard to program. In the 1930s, they invented digital computers, and soon made them easier to program.

High-scale computers

Scientists figured out how to make and use digital computers in the 1930s to 1940s. Scientists made a lot of digital computers, and as they did, they figured out how to ask them the right sorts of questions to get the most out of them.

Konrad Zuse's electromechanical "Z machines". The Z3 (1941) was the first working machine that used binary arithmetic. Binary arithmetic means using "Yes" and "No." to add numbers together. You could also program it. In 1998 the Z3 was proved to be Turing complete. Turing complete means that it is possible to tell this particular computer anything that it is mathematically possible to tell a computer. It is the world's first modern computer.

The non-programmable Atanasoff-Berry Computer (1941) which used vacuum tubes to store "yes" and "no" answers, and regenerative capacitor memory.

The Harvard Mark I (1944), A big computer that you could kind of program.

The U.S. Army's Ballistics Research Laboratory ENIAC (1946), which could add numbers the way people do (using the numbers 0 through 9) and is sometimes called the first general purpose electronic computer.

Nearly all modern computers use the stored-program architecture. It has become the main concept which defines a modern computer. The technologies used to build computers have changed since the 1940s, but many current computers still use the von-Neumann architecture.

In the 1950s computers were built out of mostly vacuum tubes.

Transistors replaced vacuum tubes in the 1960s because they were smaller and cheaper. They also need less power and do not break down as much as vacuum tubes.

By the 1980s, microcontrollers became small and cheap enough to replace mechanical controls in things like washing machines. The 1980s also saw home computers and personal computers. With the evolution of the Internet, personal computers are becoming as common as the television and the telephone in the household.

In 2005 Nokia started to call some of its mobile phones (the N-series) "multimedia computers" and after the launch of the Apple iPhone in 2007, many started adding the smartphone to the category of "real" computers.

Kinds of computers

There are many types of computers. Some include:

A "desktop computer" is a small machine that has a screen (which is not part of the computer). Most people keep them on top of a desk, which is why they are called "desktop computers." " Laptop computers" are computers small enough to fit on your lap. This makes them easy to carry around. Both laptops and desktops are called personal computers, because one person at a time uses them for things like playing music, surfing the web, or playing video games.

There are bigger computers that many people at a time can use. These are called "Mainframes," and these computers do all the things that make things like the internet work. You can think of a personal computer like this: the personal computer is like your skin: you can see it, other people can see it, and through your skin you feel wind, water, air, and the rest of the world. A mainframe is more like your internal organs: you never see them, and you barely even think about them, but if they suddenly went missing, you would have some very big problems.

An embedded computer, also called embedded system is a computer that does one thing and one thing only, and usually does it very well. For example, an alarm clock is an embedded computer: it tells the time. Unlike your personal computer, you cannot use your clock to play Tetris. Because of this, we say that embedded computers cannot be programmed, because you cannot install more programs on your clock. Some mobile phones, automatic teller machines, microwave ovens, CD players and cars are operated by embedded computers.

All-in-one PC

All-in-one computers are desktop computers that have all of the computer's inner mechanisms in the same case as the monitor. Apple has made several popular examples of all-in-one computers, such as the original Macintosh of the mid-1980s and the iMac of the late 1990s and 2000s.

Common uses of home computers

Common uses of computers at work

Working methods

Computers store data and the instructions as numbers, because computers can do things with numbers very quickly. These data are stored as binary symbols (1s and 0s). A 1 or a 0 symbol stored by a computer is called a bit, which comes from the words binary digit. Computers can use many bits together to represent instructions and the data that these instructions use. A list of instructions is called a program and is stored on the computer's hard disk. Computers work through the program by using a central processing unit, and they use fast memory called RAM also known as (Random Access Memory) as a space to store the instructions and data while they are doing this. When the computer wants to store the results of the program for later, it uses the hard disk because things stored on a hard disk can still be remembered after the computer is turned off.

An operating system tells the computer how to understand what jobs it has to do, how to do these jobs, and how to tell people the results. Millions of computers may be using the same operating system, while each computer can have its own application programs to do what its user needs. Using the same operating systems makes it easy to learn how to use computers for new things. A user who needs to use a computer for something different, can learn how to use a new application program. Some operating systems can have simple command lines or a fully user-friendly GUI.

The Internet

One of the most important jobs that computers do for people is helping with communication. Communication is how people share information. Computers have helped people move forward in science, medicine, business, and learning, because they let experts from anywhere in the world work with each other and share information. They also let other people communicate with each other, do their jobs almost anywhere, learn about almost anything, or share their opinions with each other. The Internet is the thing that lets people communicate between their computers.

Computers and waste

A computer is now almost always an electronic device. It usually contains materials that will become electronic waste when discarded. When a new computer is bought in some places, laws require that the cost of its waste management must also be paid for. This is called product stewardship.

Computers can become obsolete quickly, depending on what programs the user runs. Very often, they are thrown away within two or three years, because some newer programs require a more powerful computer. This makes the problem worse, so computer recycling happens a lot. Many projects try to send working computers to developing nations so they can be re-used and will not become waste as quickly, as most people do not need to run new programs. Some computer parts, such as hard drives, can break easily. When these parts end up in the landfill, they can put poisonous chemicals like lead into the ground-water. Hard drives can also contain secret information like credit card numbers. If the hard drive is not erased before being thrown away, an identity thief can get the information from the hard drive, even if the drive doesn't work, and use it to steal money from the previous owner's bank account.

Main hardware

Computers come in different forms, but most of them have a common design.

All computers have a CPU.

All computers have some kind of data bus which lets them get inputs or output things to the environment.

All computers have some form of memory. These are usually chips (integrated circuits) which can hold information.

Many computers have some kind of sensors, which lets them get input from their environment.

Many computers have some kind of display device, which lets them show output. They may also have other peripheral devices connected.

A computer has several main parts. When comparing a computer to a human body, the CPU is like a brain. It does most of the thinking and tells the rest of the computer how to work. The CPU is on the Motherboard, which is like the skeleton. It provides the basis for where the other parts go, and carries the nerves that connect them to each other and the CPU. The motherboard is connected to a power supply, which provides electricity to the entire computer. The various drives ( CD drive, floppy drive, and on many newer computers, USB flash drive) act like eyes, ears, and fingers, and allow the computer to read different types of storage, in the same way that a human can read different types of books. The hard drive is like a human's memory, and keeps track of all the data stored on the computer. Most computers have a sound card or another method of making sound, which is like vocal cords, or a voice box. Connected to the sound card are speakers, which are like a mouth, and are where the sound comes out. Computers might also have a graphics card, which helps the computer to create visual effects, such as 3D environments, or more realistic colors, and more powerful graphics cards can make more realistic or more advanced images, in the same way a well trained artist can.

Largest computer companies

Images for kids

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A computer is a machine that accepts data as input, processes that data using programs, and outputs the processed data as information. Many computers can store and retrieve information using hard drives. Computers can be connected together to form networks, allowing connected computers to communicate with each other.

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Who Invented Computers? | COLOSSAL QUESTIONS

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1. Who invented this invention?

2. How does this invention work?

3.  How has this invention had a positive impact on your community? How does it make life easier?

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Who Invented the TV? | COLOSSAL QUESTIONS

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Telegram television (also known as a TV) is a machine with a screen. Televisions receive broadcasting signals and change them into pictures and sound. The word "television" comes from the words tele ( Greek for far away) and vision ().

Sometimes a television can look like a box. Older TVs had a large cathode ray tube in a large wooden frame and sat on the floor like furniture. Newer TVs are much lighter and flatter.

A TV can show pictures from many television networks. Computers and mobile devices also can be used for watching television programs.

The television was invented in the 1920s but the equipment was expensive and the pictures were poor. By the 1950s, these problems had been fixed and TVs became widespread.

At first, all televisions used an antenna (or aerial). This would pick up television programmes from broadcasting stations. A TV station could be many miles or kilometers away, and still be received. TVs can also show movies from VCD and DVD players or VCRs. Cable TV and Satellite television can provide more programs at once than broadcast can. Video game consoles connect to most modern TVs. Some computers can also use a TV as a computer monitor.

All TVs have screens where the picture is viewed. Before the 1950s these were usually " black and white", which made everything look grey, but all modern TVs show colors. Most 20th century screens also had rounded corners. That is because television screens were cathode ray tubes. These are like heavy glass jars with one side bulging out to form the screen.

Today flat panel displays are the usual kind. These are usually flat rectangles with straight edges. This long rectangle looks more like the shape of a movie theatre screen. This is called widescreen. If a widescreen set was 30 cm tall, it would be 53 cm wide. For this to work best, TV shows also need to be made in widescreen. Widescreen sets can still be any size, but they have the same widescreen shape.

The early 21st century is also when digital television transmission became more common than analog television.

Related pages

Images for kids

Baird in 1925 with his televisor equipment and dummies "James" and "Stooky Bill" (right).

Coaxial cable is used to carry cable television signals into cathode ray tube and flat panel television sets.

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Telegram television (also known as a TV) is a machine with a screen. Televisions receive broadcasting signals and change them into pictures and sound. The word "television" comes from the words tele ( Greek for far away) and vision (). Sometimes a television can look like a box.

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Invention of Television | Who Invented The First TV? | Evolution of Television | The Dr. Binocs Show

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Alexander Graham Bell for Kids | Learn all about this famous inventor | Who invented the phone?

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A telephone, also known as a phone, is a communication tool. Originally it was an electric tool transmitting analogue speech along wires. Now it is an electronic tool sending digital signals on wires or radio transmission. Using a telephone, two people who are in different places can talk to each other. Early telephones needed to be connected with wires which are called fixed or landline telephones. Modern mobile phones use radio waves.

Alexander Graham Bell was the first person to patent the telephone, in 1876. Early telephones were wired directly to each other and could only talk to the phone that they were connected to. Later, telephone exchanges allowed connecting to other telephones. During the 20th century the machines that made the connections were automated.

Types of telephones

There are many different types of telephone. A telephone that can be carried around is called a mobile phone or cell phone. These became popular in the late 1980s. It has become common for people to carry mobile phones and in some places it is unusual to not have one. The majority are smartphones, which can be used as computers. Some mobile phones are able to make telephone calls using communications satellites instead of masts on the ground, which means people can make calls from anywhere in the world.

In most countries there are public payphones. To use one, people pay with coins, a credit card or a prepaid card.

Computers can use a machine called a modem or a Digital subscriber line router to talk to other computers over a telephone line. This allows a computer to connect to other computer networks including the Internet.

Most countries have a telephone network. The telephones in one place are connected to a telephone exchange. The exchanges are connected together in a world-wide network. In less developed countries cell phones are used as a cheaper and faster way to connect the countryside to the network.

Telephone number

Most telephones have their own number. Today, telephone numbers are about seven to ten digits long. In many countries, part of the telephone number is called the area code. Area codes are used to make sure the numbers are not the same in two different places. Areas have their own area code, and countries have their own country code.

By the end of 2009, there were a total of nearly 6 billion mobile and fixed-line telephone subscribers worldwide. This included 1.26 billion fixed-line subscribers and 4.6 billion mobile subscribers.

Images for kids

In Spanish: Teléfono para niños

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Who Invented Telephone? | Invention of Telephone | The Dr Binocs Show | Peekaboo Kidz

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1. Who invented this invention?

2. How does this invention work?

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