The Harvard-IBM Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator was one of the first general-purpose, digital computers. The computer was also known as the "Mark I." Howard H. Aiken (1900-1973) was the progenitor of the Mark I. While working on his doctoral thesis in physics, Aiken encountered calculations that were long and tedious to complete. He began to entertain the idea of constructing a machine that, once programmed, would automatically perform a wide range of complicated calculations. In 1937, Aiken wrote a proposal to construct a computer, but neither Harvard University, where he worked, nor a company that he initially approached for funding, showed much enthusiasm. However, International Business Machines (IBM) Corporation did pay attention to Aiken's proposal, and agreed to fund the project. IBM management looked on the Mark I project as an opportunity to be associated both with...