Wednesday, May 7, 2008

May 7, 1895: Calculator Learns to Multiply


May 7, 1895: Calculator Learns to Multiply: "Otto Steiger receives a patent for his Millionaire calculating machine. It may not have been fruitful, but it multiplied.

The history of calculators stretches back to the invention of the abacus around 2500 B.C. through early attempts by mathematicians like Blaise Pascal and various 19th-century machines, including Charles Babbage's famous difference engine. By the late 19th century, some of these mechanical wonders could add and subtract, but could only simulate multiplication through repeated addition."

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