The History of Computing
By: Stem Response Wlv
Tags: Computer Science, Science, Computing, University, STEM

This week (7th-14th December 2020) is Computer Science Education Week, so in this feature piece, we’ll be taking a brief look at some of the history behind computing, and how you can pursue a career in computer science.

Courtesy of Schools Week.

You may already know what a computer is, but for the sake of consistency:

A computer is a machine that can be instructed to carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations automatically via computer programming.

Computers weren’t always silver rectangles with a shiny fruit on the back, in fact, your own mobile phone is a computer in itself because it’s programmed to perform certain actions when a series of buttons/touch-screen commands are pressed.

One of the earliest computers ever made was called The Enigma Machine.

Courtesy of The Alan Turing Institute.

The Enigma machine was manufactured during World War 2, and was used for the encryption of communications between German Navy and its Naval bases. The model pictured above offered 4,134 million million million (4,134,000,000,000,000,000,000) possible ways in which it could be set up.

The machine was famously ‘cracked’ after Alan Turing and fellow code-breakers at Bletchley Park came up with a device called the ‘Bombe’, another rudimentary computer, which dramatically sped-up the process of decrypting each day’s Enigma messages from Nazi Germany.

From August 1940 onwards, the Bombe machines were used to find keys which cracked thousands of Enigma messages every single month.

Courtesy of Britannica.

Colossus was the world’s first electronic computer, which had a single purpose: to help decipher the Lorenz-encrypted messages being sent between Hitler and his generals, once again, during World War II. This period of time was vital for the development of computers all over the world, so that each country could keep up with the huge technological advances being made by the opposition.

Courtesy of BT.

The Apple I was Apple’s first ever product, which was made it’s public debut in April 1976 at the Homebrew Computer Club in California. The Apple I is usually credited as the first personal computer to be sold in fully assembled form, and was officially the first personal computer to use a keyboard. This computer’s built-in terminal circuitry was distinctive from other similar units commercially available at the time (such as the Altair), as all that was needed was a keyboard and an inexpensive video monitor. Apple obviously went on to become one of the most well-known tech companies in the world.

Are You Interested In Computer Science?

If you’re interested in a career in computer science, here are some resources you could find helpful!

Courtesy of the Computer Science Degree Hub.

Firstly, the Prospects website is super helpful for learning what kind of specific careers are available in tis field, as well as what sort of qualifications you would need to get there.

The University of Wolverhampton has a variety of courses in the Mathematics and Computer Science, so be sure to take a look at what’s available there too.

By Phoebe Hinton-Sheley