Technology itself is abound in classic and modern literature. From The Time Machine by H.G. Wells, to Digital Fortress by Dan Brown, technological advances are used widely to grab interest and imagine futuristic worlds. The Time Machine creates a story based on a time traveling machine and a man's adventure through many different times. This book helped popularize the idea of traveling through many different dimensions. Digital Fortress is a novel about an amazing computer that is supposed to be able to crack any code but finally meets its match. This uncrackable code creates a thrilling adventure for the heroine NSA scientist Susan Fletcher. As you can see, computer technology is used widely in literature because most people love to imagine a world where computers can do it all.
The Five Generations of Computers:
The timeline of computers from history to the present and beyond is commonly referred to as having generations. Much like generations of families; generations of computers represent change as time goes on.
THE FIRST GENERATION OF COMPUTERS-1940 thru 1956:
It may seem easy to put a date on the first computer but it is not as simple as it may seem. There are different interpretations as to what may be defined as a computer but for all intensive purposes, the first digital computer was created between 1937 and 1942 by Professor John Vincent Atanasoff and graduate student Cliff Berry at the Iowa State College. It may seem like something out of a science fiction novel, but the first computer was bigger than a room and consisted of vacuum tubes and and magnetic drums to compute information and store data. The first generation computers were so large that they consumed large amounts of energy and gave off large amounts of heat. The first computers, as with today's used basic input and output for information. The first generation computers received and gave information using paper and punch cards. Binary, the language used to program the first computers is defined by Webster dictionary as something made of or based on two things or parts. Therefore one can understand that the language used to program computers is a series of ones and zeros arranged in patterns.THE SECOND GENERATION OF COMPUTERS-1956 thru 1963:
Inventing transistors became a huge step for the building and programming of computers. Invented in 1947 but becoming popular in the early '50s , transistors eliminated the use of vacuum tubes in computers. Another change initiated by transistors was the switch from binary language to Assembly language, although Assembly is complex, it is much simpler than binary. Second generations began to show the characteristics of modern day computers ad were equipped with accessories such as printers, disk storage, and operating systems. Second generation computers were commonly used to process financial information. During the second generation, another big invention occurred, the invention of supercomputers. Two were invented during this time period and they were used specifically for computing numbers for scientific use.THE THIRD GENERATION OF COMPUTERS-1964 thru 1971:
Integrated circuitry became a large part in the further advancement of computer technology. The transistors of the second generation of computers became miniaturized and were attached to silicone chips which are known as semiconductors. Punch cards and paper were replaced by the use of keyboards and monitors. Becoming interfaced with an operating systems allowed the computers to run multiple programs at once. As third generation computers were built they became cheaper and smaller and available to a wider audience.THE FOURTH GENERATION OF COMPUTERS-1971 thru Present:
The creation of the microprocessor brought about the fourth generation of computer technology. Microprocessors took thousands of integrated circuits and built them into a single silicon chip. The technology of a first generation computer could be shrunk so small it could fit in the palm of your hand. With this new technology computers became much more cost efficient and widely popular. First came minicomputers with applications such as word processors and spreadsheets which were even able to be used by non-technical users. Next came video game systems such as the Atari 2600 which generated much interest in the computers. Personal computers for home and office use next came out in 1981 introduced by IBM. In one year, personal computer use nearly doubled. Within ten years, the number of personal computers in use went from 5.5 million to 65 million. As computers became more widespread, the size continued to shrink from desktops to laptops to Palmtops. In the 1990's, Internet and Local Area Networks(LAN) and Wide Area Networks (WAN) continued to spread interest in computer technology and help with the sharing of information. THE FIFTH GENERATION OF COMPUTERS-Present thru Future:
As the future looms, scientists have begun drafting ideas for computers with more technology than some can even imagine. AI or artificial intelligence is the key concept, scientists hope to establish a computer that can take verbal instructions and perform the action or function asked of it. These computers may even eventually have the capacity to learn. Another part of the future plans for our technology is the idea of parallel processing which is showing that CPU's can be powered side by side generating more power than using central processing. Using this method could help speed up information traffic.
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