You are a member of a group of historians from a large university. The head of the History Department has assigned all members the task of investigating the history of computing. Every member of the History Department will be involved in the task. Groups will be assigned and each group will have a goal of discovering and presenting information about a person, an event, or a thing that made or was a significant contribution to the history of computing. Groups will consist of two or three members and will be determined by "luck of the draw."
Dr. Historybuff has assigned members of his department to research and
report on significant contributors/ contributions to the evolution of computing.
To help exand the understanding of the history of computing, the professor
has asked you to select from the following choices:
Use this space to point out places on the internet (or physical resources in the classroom) that will be available for the learners to use to accomplish the task. Embed the anchors within a description of each resource so that your learners know in advance what they're clicking on.
Charles Babbage this
site contains biographical information.
Ada
Byron King Countess of Lovelace contains biographical information and
pictures.
John
W. Mauchly an Exhibition in the Department of Special Collections at
the University of Pennsylvania Van Pelt Library, University of Pennsylvania
A Short History of
Computing history of computing report by an eighth grader.
Blaise Pascal French
mathematician who invented first calculator
Stonehengethis site
contains biographical information and pictures.
Computers: From
the Past to the Presentlecture presented by Michelle A. Hoyle.
History
of Computing/The Abacuselectronic computers made simple.
Dr.
John Von Neumann this site contains biographical information.
Computing
History Slide Show a great slide show on the history of computing.
Jacquard's
Loom this site contains biographical information.
Past
Notable Women of Computing & Mathematics a site devoted to notable
women of computing history.
A Chronology of
Computer History: a timeline on the history of the computer.
The
Virtual Museum of Computing take a peak at this museum and take a look
at the past.
A Brief History of
Computer Technology a great site for information.
John Atanasoff a
look at this pioneer's life and contributions to the history of the computer.
John Louis von Neumann
this site contains information biographical information.
Computer Images great
site for ancient computer images.
Charles Babbage
this site contains more information on his life.
Offline Resources
Comptons Multimedia Encyclopedia
Grolier's Encyclopedia
Local Libraries
Computer Science Teachers/ Professors
1. To assist you in your research endeavors, explore the above sites.
2. Document all pertinent information.
3. After completing your research, prepare a report to be presented at the
annual history conference. You may use the presentation tool of your choice.
This task will enable you to expand your and your students' understanding of how computing has reached the importance it now plays in our lives.