Innovation and Invention of Digital Computers: 3D Gallery

Saturn V Digital Computer

The Saturn V Rocket was one of the
first implementations of a digital computer in industrial methods. This computer
is very different from the modern interpretation of a computer. In a sense, Mission
Control operated a digital computer with analogue methods. Individual lines of
code were used to execute operations on the Saturn V. At this point, data
storage was just being developed and in a very “trial” status. Modern computers
use either hard drives or solid-state drives where memory is unimaginably large
compared to the Saturn V computer. In 2020, the standard storage on a computer
is roughly 500 gigabytes to 1000 gigabytes. One storage module on the Saturn V
held 14 kilobytes (1/71,328^th of 1000gigabytes!). One byte contains
8 bits of information; on the Saturn V storage module, individual bits of information
are visible! Each bit was formed by looping a metallic circle through 4 copper
wires. The invention of the Saturn V pushed the envelope of what could be
accomplished by computers and propelled digital computer innovation.

MITS Altair 8800

The MITS Altair 8800 was the very first computer that
was commercially available to the public. The computer itself was very
rudimentary compared to modern computers, and of course, the Saturn V computer.
Although, the Saturn V had much more memory, the MITS Altair 8800 was a very
small fraction of the price of the Saturn V computer. Included with the base Altair
8800 was 256 bytes of information. Only one function can be performed with the
base memory, which was a game (rather a method of testing the computer’s function)
called “Kill the Bit.” This “game” flashed lights on the control surface and the
user had to flick the corresponding switch before the light went out. Users of
the Altair 8800 needed to purchase large amounts of other equipment to be able
to explore the full applications of this computer. Necessary items included
spare memory, serial interface board, and the Teletyper. The Teletyper was
essential to allowing the user to execute commands on the computer. Although
very basic, the Altair 8800 was revolutionary because the public was finally
able to discover the digital computer for a relatively competitive price.

Tim Berners-Lee : The Inventor of the Internet

With the invention of the first personal computer, it
was only a matter of time before inter-computer networks would be developed.
Tim Berners-Lee was the pioneer of the basic techniques that led to the
invention of the modern internet. He developed Hypertext Markup Language, or
HTML, which is the fundamental coding process to design a webpage. Berners-Lee
also designed Hypertext Transfer Protocol, also known as the beginning text of
a URL. These two processes were the beginnings of the World Wide Web. “Internet”
was mildly available at this time, but Berners-Lee’s innovations allowed for more
efficient communication between computers across the world. Information was
much easier to share through coding with HTML. And Hypertext Transfer Protocol
allowed for easy retrieval of the information created with HTML. With the invention
of the personal computer, Berners-Lee created what the modern era knows as a
URL and webpage. Berners-Lee’s innovations sparked an ongoing process of web development
that has created a massive market for employment in the modern age.

The Shrimp Girl

The Shrimp Girl is a painting by the English artist William Hogarth. It was painted around 1740–45, and is held by the National Gallery, London. [more]

Mr. and Mrs. Andrews

Mr and Mrs Andrews is an oil on canvas portrait of about 1750 by Thomas Gainsborough, now in the National Gallery, London. [more]

Flatford Mill

Flatford Mill (Scene on a Navigable River) is an oil painting by English artist John Constable, painted in 1816. It is Constable's largest exhibition canvas to be painted mainly outdoors, the first of his large "six-foot" paintings [more]

The Fighting Temeraire

The Fighting Temeraire tugged to her last berth to be broken up, 1838 is an oil painting by the English artist J. M. W. Turner. HMS Temeraire was one of the last second-rate ships of the line to have played a distinguished role in the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. [more]

The Hireling Shepherd

This is a painting by William Holman Hunt, a leading British Pre-Raphaelite.

Ophelia

Ophelia is a painting by British artist Sir John Everett Millais, completed between 1851 and 1852. It depicts Ophelia, a character from Hamlet, singing before she drowns in a river in Denmark. [more]

The Music Lesson

The Music Lesson or Lady at the Virginals with a Gentleman by Jan Vermeer, is a painting of young female pupil receiving the titular music lesson. [more]

Username:
Password:
Submit Cancel
Not a member? JOIN NOW!

Innovation and Invention of Digital Computers