All computers are defined by their ability to input, store, process, and output data

A timeline of computer history

The earliest computers bear little resemblance to the computing devices that most people rely on today. This timeline graphic from the Computer History Museum tracks their evolution, from the early days of bulky mainframes that only experts generally used through to the personal computing revolution and on to the modern mobile era. Readers will learn important context ahead of the next major computing platform shift.

An explanation of Turing machines—the foundations of digital algorithms and computers

The device reads data, overwrites or ignores it, and then moves on to the next piece of data based on a set of programmed rules. By imagining this data as zeros and ones—binary that makes up computer code—Turing machines became the theoretical models for how any algorithm could be run on a computer if the procedure could be coded into a set of digital rules.

The first computers performed calculations using lightbulb-like tubes

Before transistors, the first electronic computers relied on vacuum tubes—components that switched signals on and off. Despite machines like ENIAC—the first programmable, general-purpose, electronic computer—utilizing nearly 18,000 tubes that generated massive amounts of heat and frequent failures, they laid the foundation for modern computing hardware.

Today's massive data centers evolved from single-room mainframes

Punch card computers from the late 1940s were used to store and process a company's data locally before the advent of desktop computers. As the amount of data and company sizes increased alongside the miniaturization of technology, mainframes were replaced by local server rooms and external facilities with interconnected servers running cloud-based and AI software.

Semiconductor chips are electronic devices that store and process information

They can contain billions of microscopic switches on a chip smaller than a fingernail. An article provides a quick overview of how the devices work and how they’ve provided the backbone of the computer age.

See how computer memory really works—from binary bits to modern RAM

The video explains how computers store information as 1s and 0s, how RAM functions as fast working memory, and why systems utilize different types of storage. The video demonstrates how this process enables computers to operate.

A brief history of artificial intelligence

The concept of artificial intelligence and what it may mean for humanity has evolved as computer technologies have grown increasingly powerful through the decades. Beginning with the first (massive) computers in the 1940s, scientists have sought to make the machines as intelligent as humans. But it wasn't until computing power made exponential gains have computers begun to imitate human behavior.

English mathematician Ada Lovelace wrote the first computer algorithm a century before computers existed and hypothesized that computing devices would one day be able to compose music—foreseeing the generative AI systems of today.

Quantum computers use qubits to solve problems much faster than classical machines

Unlike regular computers, where each bit is either 0 or 1, quantum computers use qubits, which can simultaneously be both—allowing for massive parallel processing power. Google’s quantum processor once solved a problem in seconds that would have taken a supercomputer 47 years.

The hardware powering AI was originally designed for video game graphics processing

Graphics processing units are specialized computer chips that can process multiple data streams in parallel, including pixel colors for a display. Such processing is required to find connections across text data and generate outputs quickly.

View the layout and components that make up a typical data center

Alongside server rooms for the storage, processing, and transmission of data, data centers include climate control systems to manage the heat generated by microchips, backup systems to ensure systems can run during power outages, offices for on-site personnel, and monitoring and security stations to provide continuous protection against physical threats.

COBOL was partly derived from Grace Hopper's FLOW-MATIC programming language

The Common Business-Oriented Language was developed for business data processing, supporting precise decimal calculations and an English-like syntax. Able to work across operating systems and hardware environments, COBOL and its newer versions support 80% of in-person credit card transactions and 95% of all ATM transactions.

The US Navy used The 'Harvard Calculator' to solve advanced physics problems

Designed in 1937 by Harvard graduate student Howard H. Aiken, the IBM Mark I was a groundbreaking machine used to solve ballistic trajectories and other mathematical problems whose solutions were needed for the design of the atomic bomb in World War II. The device was one of the first mechanical computers.

An overview of Linux, from the foundational program to its related operating systems

The Linux kernel, which bridges hardware and software, serves as the basis for many fully customizable operating systems, whose components can be modified or removed to optimize performance or reduce bloat on devices with limited resources. This has made these OSes useful for low-power devices like smart thermostats, as well as for powerful supercomputers that require computational efficiency.

Mac settings have evolved from minimalism to chaotic clutter

The 1984 Mac control panel featured wordless icons, sliders, and desktop pattern editors, highlighting early experimentation in graphical user interface design. This software charm and personality gradually disappeared as Apple enforced visual and functional consistency over time.

Why atoms are used to keep track of time and define the meaning of a second

Small variations in the production of human-made devices, such as mechanical watches and pendulums, make them unreliable for the ultraprecise timekeeping required by modern technology, including financial transaction timestamping and GPS. Because atoms obey fundamental laws of nature and never wear out, their light emissions when energized provide a consistent timekeeping signal.

Distinguishing between Web 1.0, 2.0, and 3, all made possible by the internet

The World Wide Web began as read-only, static webpages on Web 1.0, where data could not be entered. With Web 2.0, the online interface became a read-write space for data entry, post creation, and forum participation, among other activities. Web3 is intended to be decentralized, user-owned, and built on blockchain technology.

At the age of seven, Grace Hopper dismantled alarm clocks

Foreshadowing a career in computers, Hopper exhibited a curiosity for gadgets at a young age and took apart seven clocks, determined to understand how they worked. Despite having a dollhouse, Hopper built an elevator for it and showed a greater interest in building toy furniture than playing with dolls.

What is the function of money?

Nearly everyone uses some form of money to facilitate day-to-day activities, but what is it, anyways? Economists define money as anything that can be accepted as final payment for goods and services. Shells, beads, corn, and a wide range of objects have acted as money throughout history—explore the common but deceptively abstract concept of money in this eight-minute podcast from the Federal Reserve.

The Middle Ages produced inventions that still our lives today

Far from a “Dark Age,” the medieval era brought about significant innovations—from the printing press and mechanical clocks to navigational tools and early computing devices. This curated list of inventions demonstrates how profoundly medieval creativity has shaped the modern world.

Efforts to build touch-enabled machines highlight the complexity of human touch

The challenges that engineers are facing as they try to reproduce a human's ability to touch and also give robots the ability to interpret that kind of sensory flow are furthering our understanding of the myriad intricacies of human touch—and the challenges in emulating it.

Typists are among the fastest shrinking jobs in the US

Typists and word processors have a projected employment change of roughly negative 36.1% between 2024 and 2034, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Telephone operators, data entry keyers, and other occupations will likely see reduced employment opportunities as well.

The Internet of Things refers to the connection of all devices to the cloud

These connections between everyday objects, each other, and data processing centers enable devices to adapt to user needs and improve their ability to respond to real-time data. IoT networks are designed to enhance the efficiency of homes, cities, and industries.

Different types of malware are categorized by how they spread or operate

Computer viruses require user interaction to execute a file and spread, whereas worms can self-replicate across systems without human intervention. Ransomware locks systems until a key is provided, spyware tracks and reports user activity to a third party, and trojans disguise various types of malware as legitimate software.

USB connectors for universal data transfer debuted in 1996

Since the introduction of USB 1.0 by a consortium of companies, data transfer speeds have steadily increased from 1.5 megabits per second to 40 gigabits per second as of 2019. Variations in USB connector types enable them to be used for applications and devices that require different speeds and power.

Memory exists as multiple types stored across various brain systems

Memory isn't one uniform function—it's made up of multiple systems, like declarative (facts/events) and non-declarative (skills/habits), which involve different brain areas such as the hippocampus, amygdala, and cerebellum.

The history of many kitchen appliances involves unexpected discoveries and applications, including wartime radar turned hamster defroster and replacing an 'ice king' with heat-stealing boxes.

Radioactive elements can introduce software errors because the ionizing radiation they produce can detach electrons from atoms, and computer code relies on the distribution of electrons.

When you complete a CAPTCHA on a website to prove you are human, you may be unknowingly training algorithms for self-driving cars, whose systems require training data to help identify crosswalks, bicycles, and other outdoor objects.

Clever Hans was a 1900s horse that was believed to be able to solve math equations, tell time, and read and comprehend German, until a psychology student discovered how he got his answers.

In 2019, a laptop loaded with six of the worst malware in history and described as 'an exhibit of historical weaponry' sold for $1.3M.

The name 'Silicon Valley' arose from the founding of Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory in Fairchild Semiconductor in 1956-57, founded near Stanford University in Palo Alto

Memecoins are a type of cryptocurrency—a form of digital currency with a wide variety of uses—created around popular 'memes,' or viral internet jokes.

As of 2025, the most cited papers in science include a review of graphene, methods to improve image recognition, streamlining electron density calculations, and optimizing protein studies.

Electrical grids worldwide must double their power delivery capacity by 2050 to meet surging demand from AI and electric vehicles.

See how fireworks are made and learn how metals like magnesium and copper are responsible for different colors.

Alzheimer's can lead to brain shrinkage, with an average of around 2% of volume reduction per year

Chaos theory—informally known as the butterfly effect—is the reason why weather forecasts are presented with probabilities rather than certainties.

Pure water does not conduct electricity because this flow of energy requires the movement of charged particles, and water is a neutral molecule.

Objects can be 3D printed with light by projecting 2D computerized tomography (CT) scans onto rotating cylinders of resin, which solidify upon exposure.

How Amazon operates a 'flywheel' business model, a self-reinforcing cycle that drives continuous growth

Sony set the standard for cylinder-shaped batteries when it repurposed manufacturing equipment used to make rolls of magnetic recording tape.

Hear 50 years of iconic hip-hop samples, the genre's foundational looped tracks

Roughly 43 million US borrowers owe roughly $1.7T in student debt, the second-largest source of consumer debt behind mortgages.

Before humans, the Soviet Union and the United States sent animals—including apes, dogs, and cats—to space during the Space Race.

Dorothy's famous entrance into Oz in 'The Wizard of Oz' relied on analog tricks, including a body double and sepia-toned paint, as much as it did on technology

The original copy of the Declaration of Independence is not a pristine document, and even features a smudged anonymous handprint in the bottom left corner.

The word 'jazz' evolved from 'jasm,' 19th-century American slang for 'energy'

See how each of the more than two million known species relates to each other—and to common ancestors—in this zoomable tree of life.

Gerrymandering works through two techniques: cracking opposing voters across districts to dilute their power, and packing them into a few to waste their votes in lopsided majorities.