Google started as a graduate school project. So it’s apt that the next film in our computing heritage series pays homage to the work of another student team, nearly 60 years ago in Austria. In the mid 1950’s, computer design was in the midst of a major...
“You’ve come a long way, Baby”: remembering the world’s first stored program computer
Sixty-five years ago today, the Manchester Small Scale Experimental Machine—nicknamed “Baby”—became the earliest computer in the world to run a program electronically stored in its memory. This was a flagship moment: the first implementation of the stored...
Remembering WEIZAC: the beginning of computing in Israel
Israel is now one of the world’s tech powerhouses, second only to Silicon Valley as a hub for startups, but it wasn’t always this way. Today, in honour of the 84th birthday of Professor Aviezri Fraenkel, we’re delighted to share a short film sharing...
Marking a cultural shift in computing with EDSAC
Computing’s early days are full of stories about great technical leaps forward. But sometimes what matters most isn’t a shift in technology so much as a change in the way it is used. The “Electronic Delay Storage Automatic Calculator” (EDSAC)—64...
Sharing stories of Bletchley Park: home of the code-breakers
For decades, the World War II codebreaking centre at Bletchley Park was one of the U.K.’s most closely guarded secrets. Today, it’s a poignant place to visit and reflect on the achievements of those who worked there. Their outstanding feats of intellect,...
Marking the birth of the modern-day Internet
Today is the 30th birthday of the modern-day Internet. Five years ago we marked the occasion with a doodle. This year we invited Vint Cerf to tell the story. Vint is widely regarded as one of the fathers of the Internet for his contributions to shaping...
A tribute to Turing, the father of modern computing
“The past is a foreign country—they do things differently there.” It’s a saying that rings especially true in the world of technology. But while innovating requires us to focus on the future, there are times when it’s important to look back. Today—the...
