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Forum #1 - Thursday, January 31, 2008
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Computer History Myths Debunked
Most Computer Science faculty introduce historical anecdotes in our computer science lectures. We may tell our students that: Joseph-Marie Jacquard invented the punched cards, or that Herman Hollerith invented the punch cards, or that Charles Babbage invented the first computer, or that Charles Babbage didn’t build the first computer because the technology of his time was not sophisticated enough to support his requirements, or that Ada Lovelace was the first computer programmer, or that 20th Century computers were developed independent of the work of Charles Babbage.
While teaching the History of Computing in England, the author and his students discovered that many of the historical anecdotes that are taught in computer classes are not historically accurate and in some cases actually false. The author explores the research findings from a History of Computing course that was taught as a study-abroad program. This presentation will share their insights as they explored early computing history.
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