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"[[Computers are useless. They can only give you answers]]." --[[Pablo Picasso]] "[[Computers are useless. They can only give you answers]]." --[[Pablo Picasso]]
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 +"By [[Reason|reasoning]], I understand [[computation]]. And to compute is to collect the sum of many things added together at the same time, or to know the remainder when one thing has been taken from another. To reason therefore is the same as to add or to subtract."--''[[De Corpore]]'' (1655) by [[Thomas Hobbes]]
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[[Image:Diagram of the human mind, from Robert Fludd (1574-1637), Utriusque cosmic maioris scilicet et minoris metaphysica.jpg|thumb|right|200px|''[[Utriusque cosmi maioris scilicet et minoris metaphysica]]'' by [[Robert Fludd]]]] [[Image:Diagram of the human mind, from Robert Fludd (1574-1637), Utriusque cosmic maioris scilicet et minoris metaphysica.jpg|thumb|right|200px|''[[Utriusque cosmi maioris scilicet et minoris metaphysica]]'' by [[Robert Fludd]]]]

Revision as of 23:12, 14 December 2019

"Computers are useless. They can only give you answers." --Pablo Picasso


"By reasoning, I understand computation. And to compute is to collect the sum of many things added together at the same time, or to know the remainder when one thing has been taken from another. To reason therefore is the same as to add or to subtract."--De Corpore (1655) by Thomas Hobbes

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A computer is a device that can be instructed to carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations automatically via computer programming. Modern computers have the ability to follow generalized sets of operations, called programs. These programs enable computers to perform an extremely wide range of tasks.

Computers are used as control systems for a wide variety of industrial and consumer devices. This includes simple special purpose devices like microwave ovens and remote controls, factory devices such as industrial robots and computer-aided design, and also general purpose devices like personal computers and mobile devices such as smartphones.

Early computers were only conceived as calculating devices. Since ancient times, simple manual devices like the abacus aided people in doing calculations. Early in the Industrial Revolution, some mechanical devices were built to automate long tedious tasks, such as guiding patterns for looms. More sophisticated electrical machines did specialized analog calculations in the early 20th century. The first digital electronic calculating machines were developed during World War II. The speed, power, and versatility of computers have been increasing dramatically ever since then.

Conventionally, a modern computer consists of at least one processing element, typically a central processing unit (CPU), and some form of memory. The processing element carries out arithmetic and logical operations, and a sequencing and control unit can change the order of operations in response to stored information. Peripheral devices include input devices (keyboards, mice, joystick, etc.), output devices (monitor screens, printers, etc.), and input/output devices that perform both functions (e.g., the 2000s-era touchscreen). Peripheral devices allow information to be retrieved from an external source and they enable the result of operations to be saved and retrieved.

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Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Computer" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.

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