Digital computation: Some history
~1850: George Boole invents Boolean algebra
- Maps logical propositions to symbols
- Allows us to manipulate logic statements using mathematics
1938: Claude Shannon links Boolean algebra and switches
1945: John von Neumann develops the first stored computer program
1946: ENIAC…the first computer
- 18,000 tubes, several hundred multiplies per minute
1947: Shockley, Brittain, and Bardeen invent the transistor
1956: Harris introduces the first logic gate
1972: Intel introduces the 4004 microprocessor
1998: 0.25?m feature sizes; processors with 10-million transistors