The following sections of this BookRags Literature Study Guide is offprint from Gale's For Students Series: Presenting Analysis, Context, and Criticism on Commonly Studied Works: Introduction, Author Biography, Plot Summary, Characters, Themes, Style, Historical Context, Critical Overview, Criticism and Critical Essays, Media Adaptations, Topics for Further Study, Compare & Contrast, What Do I Read Next?, For Further Study, and Sources.
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The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Encyclopedia of Popular Fiction: "Social Concerns", "Thematic Overview", "Techniques", "Literary Precedents", "Key Questions", "Related Titles", "Adaptations", "Related Web Sites". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
The following sections, if they exist, are offprint from Beacham's Guide to Literature for Young Adults: "About the Author", "Overview", "Setting", "Literary Qualities", "Social Sensitivity", "Topics for Discussion", "Ideas for Reports and Papers". (c)1994-2005, by Walton Beacham.
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1855-1898
American inventor of the calculator. The earliest seeds of Burroughs's passion for invention were planted while tinkering in his father's machine shop as a young child. At age 15 he came up with the idea for a device that would calculate the sum of numbers. In 1881, he began working on his invention, and three years later had it patented, but his machine still needed work. It wasn't until 10 years later that Burroughs had designed a fully functional version of his adding machine, which printed its results on paper. His invention proved to be a great success, but not in Burroughs's lifetime.