When computers were human: The women behind NASA’s success by Kate Becker
Before computers existed as we know them, data was processed by women. But they were much more than mere calculators.
The Gendered History of Human Computers
by Clive Thompson
The rise of human computers began in the early hunt for Halley’s comet. The astronomer Edmond Halley had predicted that the celestial body would return and that the laws of gravity could predict precisely when. But those calculations would be too complex and brutal a task for any single astronomer.
In this photo from 1959, a human computer works with an early machine computer called the IBM 704. While machine computers were capable of some speedy calculations, they weren't nearly as reliable or efficient as humans.
Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Before microchips, before electronic calculation, before nanosecond data processing, the human brain deciphered the most difficult numeric equations. In NASA's early years that meant flesh-and-blood computers, mathematically gifted individuals tasked with analysis and verification of complex aerospace data.
Among NASA's human computers, today one of the most recognized is Katherine Johnson.
Read about the wonderful Katherine Johnson here.
Information sourced from NASA
