Document Type

Class Paper

Publication Date

2017

Abstract

If the name of Charles Babbage does not in any way seem familiar, you do not stand alone. Babbage remains one of the most unpopular geniuses in our history, a mastermind of a variety of subjects, including mathematics, engineering, politics, economics, philosophy, and religion. Babbage would create the first "calculating machine," and created blueprints for other machines that could have led to the first modem-day programmable computer in as early has the mid 19th century. However, the story of Charles Babbage is indeed a tragic one: the totality of his projects were not fully completed until the late 20th century, over a hundred years after his death, due to lack of funding. His story is one that brings about fear for the rest of humanity by raising this question: how many of the world's greatest intellectual minds were never given a chance?

Comments

This paper was submitted as part of the History of Mathematics course (MATH 3083), taught by Dr. Stephen C. Hennagin.

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