Computers

21st Century Skills Library GLOBAL PRODUCTS C Kevin Cunningham Cherry Lake Publishing A n n A r b o r, M i c h i g a n Published in the United States of America by Cherry Lake Publishing Ann Arbor, Michigan www.cherrylakepublishing.com Content Adviser: Paul Ceruzzi, Computer Historian Photo Credits: Cover and page 1, ©Jaime Duplass, used under license from Shutterstock, Inc.; page 4, ©Chris Howes/Wild Places Photography/Alamy; page 7, ©ClassicStock/ Alamy; page 9, ©Ivan Cholakov, used under license from Shutterstock, Inc.; page 10, ©Greatstock Photographic Library/Alamy; page 13, ©i9370, used under license from Shutterstock, Inc.; page 15, ©Dainis Derics, used under license from Shutterstock, Inc.; page 17, ©Igor Smichkov, used under license from Shutterstock, Inc.; pages 18 and 21, ©Stock Connection Blue/Alamy; page 23, ©Pedro Miguel Nunes, used under license from Shutterstock, Inc.; page 24, ©Pieter Janssen, used under license from Shutterstock, Inc.; page 26, ©Robert Pernell, used under license from Shutterstock, Inc. Map by XNR Productions Inc. Copyright ©2009 by Cherry Lake Publishing All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means without written permission from the publisher. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Cunningham, Kevin, 1966– Computers / by Kevin Cunningham. p. cm.—(Global products) Includes index. ISBN-13: 978-1-60279-251-7 ISBN-10: 1-60279-251-8 1. Computers—Juvenile literature. I. Title. II. Series. QA76.23.C96 2008 004—dc22 2008002444 Cherry Lake Publishing would like to acknowledge the work of The Partnership for 21st Century Skills. Please visit www.21stcenturyskills.org for more information. T C C H A P T E R O N E The Difference Engine and the PC C H A P T E R T W O Valuable Metal C H A P T E R 13 F O U R The Shenzhen Miracle C H A P T E R 9 T H R E E Gold in the Machine C H A P T E R 4 17 F I V E Shipping It Out 23 Map 28 Glossar y 30 For More Information 31 Index 32 About the Author 32 CHAPTER ONE T D E PC S eamus and his friend Leilani had just about finished their book report. Suddenly, the computer screen went black. Both let out a loud groan. For the next 10 minutes, they tried to restart the machine. Nothing worked. Mr. O’Reilly, Seamus’s father, peeked in when he heard them yelling at the screen. “It ate our book report!” Though Charles Babbage never built a complete Difference Engine, some have been built based on his original design. Leilani exclaimed. “Computers are worthless,” Seamus said. “Whoa, whoa,” Mr. O’Reilly said. “Computers are amazing machines. You know, we’re lucky to have computers like this today. When I was in grade school, no one had a home computer. When the first home 4 21st CENTURY SKILLS LIBRARY computers came out, they were too slow. They didn’t have memory, so you saved files on cassettes instead of compact discs. Also, the screens were tiny. When you typed, you saw bright orange or green letters on a black background. No nice colors. No icons.” “Did they work, at least?” Leilani asked. Mr. O’Reilly removed the plastic cover from the computer’s tower and squinted inside. “Not as well as those we have today. You’d barely recognize what we worked with years ago.” As he poked around inside the computer, he began to explain. $$$ The ideas behind computers have floated around for almost two centuries. By the 19th century, human beings were computing mathematical tables used in shipping, astronomy, and other fields. British scient