👉 Computing's origins trace back to the mid-20th century, primarily driven by the need to solve complex problems in fields like physics and engineering. The first significant milestone was the invention of the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (ENIAC) in 1945, which was designed to calculate artillery firing tables for the U.S. Army during World War II. This massive machine, though not programmable in the modern sense, laid the groundwork for future computing. The 1950s saw the development of the first stored-program computers, such as the Manchester Baby and the UNIVAC I, which could store both data and instructions in memory, allowing for more flexible computation. These early computers used vacuum tubes and were primarily used for scientific and military applications, but they marked the beginning of an era where machines could process information at unprecedented speeds, setting the stage for the rapid technological advancements that followed.
