Charles Babbage was a native of England. Considered by many to be the grandfather of the computer he was a mathematician and inventor. He met with George Boole Professor of Mathematics at University College Cork, Ireland when they both attended Great London Exposition of 1862. Boole is described as the ‘father of the information age’.
Charles Babbage was born in London, England in 1791. Having graduated from the University of Cambridge in 1814 he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1816. He was one of the founders of Royal Astronomical Society and the Royal Statistical Society. He served as Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge.
Having built a small calculator Babbage began building the ‘Difference Machine’ in 1823. The machine was capable of performing calculations to 20 decimals. During the 1830’s he worked on the design of the Analytical Engine which was programmed using punched cards. The ‘Engine’ had most of the elements of the modern-day computer.
Babbage visited Ireland on three occasions. He was the first person to sign the visitors’ book at Birr Castle following the completion of the building of the Great Telescope there in 1845. He regularly corresponded with Professor Boole. Babbage died in London at the age of 79 on October 18th 1871.
Charles Babbage, who is considered to be the grandfather of the computer was born in the year 1791 On This Day.
Babbage and His Brain
Babbage’s Difference Engine