Babbage's Calculating Engines: Being a Collection of Papers Relating to Them; Their History and Construction

Product Description


The famous and prolific nineteenth-century mathematician, engineer and inventor Charles Babbage (1791-1871) was an early pioneer of computing. He planned several calculating machines, but none was built in his lifetime. On his death his youngest son, Henry P. Babbage, was charged with the task of completing an unfinished volume of papers on the machines, which was finally published in 1889 and is reissued here. The papers, by a variety of authors, were collected from journals including The Philosophical Magazine, The Edinburgh Review and Scientific Memoirs. They relate to the construction and potential application of Charles Babbage's calculating engines, notably the Difference Engine and the more complex Analytical Engine, which was to be programmed using punched cards. The book also includes correspondence with members of scientific societies, as well as proceedings, catalogues and drawings. Included is a complete catalogue of the drawings of the Analytical Engine.


Book Description


This book is a compilation of journal articles relating to the construction and application of Charles Babbage's pioneering calculating engines, begun by Babbage himself and finally published by his son in 1889. It includes correspondence with members of scientific societies, as well as proceedings, catalogs and drawings.


About the Author


Dr. Martin Campbell-Kelly is Lecturer in Computer Science, University of Warwick, Editor-in-Chief of the Charles Babbage Institute reprint series for the History of Computing, and editor of "Annals of the History of Computing".