Timeline Sample Text doc

Michael Faraday

1791-1867: Faraday was one of the most influential scientists in history. He contributed to the
study of electro-magnetism and electrochemistry; his discoveries include the principles of
electromagnetic induction, diamagnetism and electrolysis. Faraday’s research established the
concept of the electromagnetic field in physics. His inventions of electromagnetic rotary devices
enabled development of electric motor technology, and it was largely due to his efforts that
electricity became practical for use in technology.
Charles Babbage

1791-1871: Known as the founder of computing, Babbage began by building small calculators
that could solve equations to eight decimal places. In 1823 he designed a machine able to
compute equations to 20 decimals, which he called the difference engine. Later, he planned to
build another computer called the analytical engine, envisioning that it would be capable of
solving arithmetical operation by taking instructions from punched cards. The plans for the
analytical engine were forgotten until 1937, when his writings were discovered by British
scientists. In 1991, they built a computer they called the difference engine 2, accurate to 31
digits.
Jacquard Loom

1803: The Jacquard Loom is the first successful programmable machine. It used pasteboard
cards with punched holes, each card corresponding to one row of a tapestry. Complex textile
designs could be executed repeatably with only supervision of a human operator. Charles
Babbage and Herman Hollerith built upon Jacquard’s innovation. In 1832, Semen Korsakov
(1787-1853) devised methods of searching information stored on punched cards for the Russian
police. Scottish clock maker Alexander Bain (1811-1877) used a punched paper tape to expedite
telegraph messaging in 1846. Punched paper cards remained a primary method of data storage
through the 1980s.
Augusta Ada Lovelace

1815-1852: Daughter of the poet Lord Byron and Anne Isabella Noel Byron, Lovelace developed
a friendship with Charles Babbage. Fascinated with the Analytical Engine, Babbage’s concept of
a mechanical computer, in 1843, Lovelace translated and edited a paper about the Analytical
Engine and added additional notes. Many consider these notes to be the first computer
program ever. She also mentioned how future computers might be able to do more than just
calculation and asked questions that investigated future uses for technology. She is one of the
most influential women in the field of computing.
George Boole
1815-1864: An English mathematician, educator, philosopher, and logician, Boole worked in the
fields of differential equations and algebraic logic. He is best known as the author of The Laws
of Thought (1854) which contains Boolean algebra. Boolean logic is credited with laying the
foundations for the information age.
Arithmometers

1820: The first digital mechanical calculator strong enough and reliable enough to be used daily
in an office environment, it could add and subtract two numbers directly and could perform
long multiplications and divisions effectively by using a movable accumulator for the result.
Patented in France by Thomas de Colmar in 1820, and manufactured from 1851 to 1915, it
became the first commercially successful mechanical calculator. Eventually about twenty
European companies built clones of the arithmometer until the beginning of World War I.
Babbage’s Difference Engine

1822: Charles Babbage (1791-1871) designed and built a calculating machine he dubbed the
“Difference Engine,” completed in 1822. Babbage was unable to build his second design for a
more powerful mechanical calculating engine, so in 1985 a team at the Science Museum in
London set out to prove that the design would have worked as planned. Led by curator Doron
Swade, the team built Babbage’s machine, completing it in 1991. The team took care to use
techniques that would have been available to Babbage at the time, proving that it could have
been built in his day.
Telegraph Key

1844: A specialized electrical switch used by a trained operator to transmit text messages in
telegraph systems, usually in Morse code. Keys are used in all forms of electrical telegraph
systems, such as landline or “wire” electrical telegraphy, and “wireless,” or radio telegraphy. An
operator taps on the switch, connecting and disconnecting the electrical circuit, creating
electrical pulses of two different lengths called “dots” and “dashes,” to spell out text messages
in code.
Apple Watch

2015: Building a computer into the watch form factor has been attempted many times, but the
release of the Apple Watch led to a new level of excitement. Incorporating a version of Apple’s
iOS operating system, as well as sensors for environmental and health monitoring, the Apple
Watch was designed to be incorporated into the Apple environment with compatibility with
iPhones and MacBooks. Almost a million units were ordered on the day of release. The Watch
was received with great enthusiasm, but critics took issue with the somewhat limited battery
life and high price.
NABI- Dreamtab

2018: Dreamtab was an 8” tablet with “everything a child needs to connect, learn and play on
the go.” Dreamtab used the Android 4.3 (Jelly Bean) operating system and had more than 400
features. Time controls allowed parents to set limits for daily tablet use, individual app use and
rules for earning extra time for favorite games and videos for learning. Dreamtab’s owner,
Fuhu, was twice named Inc. Magazine’s fastest growing private company, but despite
innovative products, it became overextended and was purchased out of bankruptcy by Mattel
Corporation. Dreamtab was discontinued in 2019.