How Could Ancient Item Turn Out To Be Modern Computer?
What the archeologists discovered so far is the first marker that technology be developed in the future.
In ancient times, we already know that old inventions such as the wheel and guns were discovered thousands of years before Christ (BC). They came from the ancient empire that once triumphed, these innovations boomed and perhaps can help humans to tackle the workload at that time. Similarly, the abacus has been the oldest invention in the world besides the wheel and guns. This has been an incredible mark on humanity’s progress in science and carrying out simple calculations that are usually used to trade and produce goods. Do you know where the abacus was first invented? Well, the exact origins of the abacus present were not clear enough due to different histories and the background itself, but most widely accepted that the abacus originated in ancient Mesopotamia around 2400 BC.
The invention of the abacus created a technological revolution in its time and made human thinking about calculating and simple mathematics increasingly developed until it was able to create the modern computing system that we know. So here, we will discuss a journey from ancient Mesopotamia into the world of modern computing.
The Origins of Abacus in Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia was an area of remarkable innovation and cultural development. It was situated between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers and was among the oldest cities on earth in addition to complex societies. This explains why there arose a pressing demand for improved methods of record-keeping besides arithmetic since commerce, agriculture, and governance were becoming more intricate.
At that time, Mesopotamia used a writing style to write and communicate namely cuneiform, they used this style on the clay tablets to record transactions and administrative things. Not only this, for day-to-day they also developed more practical tools that will be explained later on.
Development of The Abacus as The Beginning of Computing
As you know what you’ve seen from the title, the abacus is believed as the first invention of ancient humans which led to the modern computer system. It has been suggested by archeological evidence that Mesopotamians used primitive counting boards or tablets as early as 2300 BCE. Inseparable to the abacus, they were made up of grooves or lines on which stones or pebbles stood as substitutes for numbers. They based their complex commercial and astronomical computations on a system that was based on the sixth small calendar number.
Furthermore, the sexagesimal system has recovered to make more efficient fractions calculations in this period. This system has allowed merchants, tax collectors, and administration staff could easily do subtraction, addition, multiplication, and division with greater accuracy, and speed, and no more manual calculations were needed.
The Abacus in Social Science and Early Computing
In the social science itself, the development of mathematics and social sciences was profoundly influenced by the use of the Abacus in Mesopotamia where people were able to record transactions, manage resources, and administer laws. As a result, everyone kept fair trading practices since all transactions were standardized through the use of an Abacus hence maintaining social order while taking care of agricultural productions necessary for planning purposes and tax collection.
In Mesopotamia, they used the abacus for teaching mathematics. It was used by scribes and scholars who ensured they could do many difficult sums very quickly. These ideas became a basis for more sophisticated mathematical ideas and methods, some of which were adapted and enriched further by future generations.
How It Could Be Early in Computer Science?
The abacus’s foundation led to subsequent breakthroughs in calculating devices. In the Renaissance epoch, mechanical calculators like the Stepped Reckoner by Pascal and Leibnitz’s Pascaline were later versions of these notions. Moving from manual to machine-based computation, these initial machines represented a significant event in the development of computer science.
In 1642, a mechanical thing for adding and subtracting which Pascal named the Pascaline was invented. It was able to represent numbers because it had rotating gears of which there were several sets representing different values, making it possible for them to carry out calculations using these gears. Leibniz also developed another device called the Step Reckoner later on in the 17th century which could do more than just adding or subtracting but also multiply and divide, thus involving an automatic process based on a drum fitted with steps.
This calculator was essentially an offshoot of the principles of the Abacus, being a machine version of those principles. The calculator paved the way for future developments in computing such as Charles Babbage’s Analytical Engine, which is believed by many to have been the first computer in history. It is evident that in Babbage’s designs, there were elements that a modern-day computer scientist would call programming and automatic computation.
Are We Still Using Abacus Nowadays?
Even though the Abacus originated from a long ancient period ago, this doesn’t rule out the possibility that the Abacus is still in use. The use of Abacus continues to be an important method of learning especially in East Asia. Hence it is utilized in teaching young pupils how to count figures, therefore aiding in building a solid foundation in figures. Because the Abacus is something that can be touched or seen, it becomes easy for the learner to make a connection hence gaining knowledge on topics such as place value, addition, subtraction, and multiplication.
In Japan, for example, many schools are still using soroban as a counting device and it is a must in their education system. Research has shown that children who excel in quire calculations can use both to perform difficult calculations very fast and accurately within a short period. Initializer and item getter are some of the cognitive functions that can be improved by using soroban, in addition to concentration and this enhances memory.
The abacus displays cultural significance and a rich heritage of mathematics in some civilizations. It frequently appears in annual events and is considered an emblem of man’s creativity in the search for information.
The Revolution of Computation
Modern computing has been shaped by the basic rules of the abacus. The development of algorithms and computers has been informed by notions like positional notation and manual computation. The binary systems and logic gates that are found in today’s digital computers have all their roots in the abacus.
Positional notation is a key principle in both the abacus and modern number systems, for example, where the position of a digit in a number determines its value. In the binary system used in digital computing, this is one principle that is crucial since the contribution made by each bit to the total value is determined by its position within the byte. Then the system could program digital platforms like what we see today.
Moreover, progressive problems are made easily manageable with the help of the method used by the abacus. Like a person manipulating an abacus, most computer programs are divided into simpler procedures called subroutines each of which has its well-defined task to perform.
Let’s Cover Everything Up!
The journey of the abacus from ancient Mesopotamia to the digital age is a clear reflection of its lasting function and power. It has been of great help in shaping mathematics, social studies, and computer science as some of the oldest computational tools. The timeless essence of the abacus is exemplified by its continued use in schools and its relevance to present-day computation.
The ancient abacus, which has its roots in the busy markets and administrative centers of Mesopotamia up to being part of the classrooms and computing systems we use today, is reflective of human ingenuity. This links early ages and current times in a process of continuity in mathematical development as it helps to remember the simplest rules governing all forms of mathematics calculation and process.
References
- Robson, Eleanor. Mathematics in Ancient Iraq: A Social History. Princeton University Press, 2008.
- Ifrah, Georges. The Universal History of Numbers: From Prehistory to the Invention of the Computer. John Wiley & Sons, 2000.
- Saito, Ken. The History and Development of the Abacus. Cambridge University Press, 1994.
- Swade, Doron. The Cogwheel Brain: Charles Babbage and the Quest to Build the First Computer. Little, Brown and Company, 2000.
- Williams, Michael R. A History of Computing Technology. IEEE Computer Society Press, 1997.
- Moon, Parry. The Abacus and the Numeral Frame. MIT Press, 1968.
- Smith, David E. History of Mathematics. Dover Publications, 1958.
