By the end of the twentieth century, computers could be found in devices from wristwatches to automobiles, from medical equipment to children's toys. But while scientists and philosophers had dreamed of the possibility of automating calculation...

device for processing, storing, and displaying information. Computer once meant a person who did computations, but now the term almost universally refers to automated electronic machinery. The first section of this article focuses on modern digital...

The earliest human spaceflights were guided by navigational computers on the ground; there was no onboard computation. But starting with project Gemini, computers have been an essential part of every space mission. When the first piloted Gemini flew in...

There are two basic data transfer and communication systems in computing technology—digital and analog. Analog systems have continuous input and output of data, while digital systems manipulate information in discrete chunks. Although digital...

Digital computers calculate by manipulating binary digits (bits; ones and zeroes). Because bits are so simple to handle they can be made easily to stand for almost anything; hence the general usefulness of digital computers. Bits can symbolize words,...

Computers in Education Electronic devices used to enhance, facilitate, or support learning activities. Since the 1980s, computers have been widely available in schools, libraries, and a growing percentage of U.S. households. In fact, the percentage of...

The digital computer is a programmable electronic device that processes numbers and words accurately and at enormous speed. It comes in a variety of shapes and sizes, ranging from the familiar desktop microcomputer to the minicomputer, mainframe, and...

What makes computers so powerful is that they can process very quickly. This computing power is very useful in physics and science. Traditionally there are theoretical physicists and experimental physicists. Theorists do paper and pencil calculations...

Programmable machine that can store, retrieve, and process data. Today's computers have at least one CPU that performs most calculations and includes a main memory, a control unit, and an arithmetic logic unit. Increasingly, personal computers contain...

Computer capable of solving problems by processing information expressed in discrete form. By manipulating combinations of binary digits (&see; binary code), it can perform mathematical calculations, organize and analyze data, control industrial and...

The NASA Columbia Supercomputer. A computer in a wristwatch. A computer is a machine which manipulates data according to a list of instructions. Computers take numerous physical forms. The first devices...