Generative Art Timeline · Chapter 1: Pre-Modern Era (Pre-1850)

1642

Blaise Pascal Builds the Pascaline

Invention

Blaise Pascal Builds the Pascaline

It was the first mechanical calculator made in quantity, performing addition and subtraction with an automatic carry between digits. Using a series of gears and wheels, the calculator revolutionized mathematics and engineering, paving the way for further development of machines that could perform more complex calculations. Pascal’s calculator was mentioned in the catalog of Cybernetic Serendipity as an important moment in the history of cybernetics.

Text by Peter Bauman. Generative Art Timeline, Le Random.

Sources

People

Blaise Pascal

Movements

cybernetics, Computing Machinery

Filed under

Ideas
computation, engineering, mathematics
Technologies
cybernetics, mechanical calculator, Pascaline
People
Blaise Pascal
Exhibitions
Cybernetic Serendipity

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