Inventor: Konrade Zuse

In 1936, Konrade Zuse created the first binary computer. The Z1 was a highly complex mechanical calculator that utilized many new concepts, such as high-capacity memory, that previous calculators lacked. In 1941 he completed the Z3, which had all of the fundamental components of today’s computer. It implemented a system that was both digital and electronic, and it was also fully programmable. He later went on to write the first programming language: "Plankalkül."

The computer has developed much over the years, yet it still has retained its fundamental design principles. Almost all of these came from the work by Zuse as well as Atanasoff and Berry’s ABC computer, which used parallel processing and regenerative memory. The difference between their computers and the current ones is clear: the ABC computer ran a maximum of one operation per 15 seconds, whereas modern computers can perform more than 1 billion per second. Computers have changed every aspect of life as we know it, providing for an efficient means for storing, organizing, and sharing data. Its dramatic impact on the future of science, economics, politics, and culture is quite possibly greater than any the world has ever known.

Picture from Encarta Encyclopedia

SOURCES:

Bellis, M. (2003). Inventors from About.com. Available March 27, 2003, from About, Inc. <http://inventors.about.com/>

• This site gave useful information about the first binary computer and its development over the years.