👉 Mercury computing, also known as mercury cell or mercury-based computing, was a type of early computing technology that utilized mercury-filled glass tubes to perform calculations. These tubes, known as relays or switches, operated by controlling the flow of mercury vapor through an electric current, which in turn activated or deactivated other electrical contacts to perform logical operations. The concept was first proposed by John Atanasoff and Clifford Berry in the 1930s, leading to the development of the Atanasoff-Berry Computer (ABC), one of the earliest electronic digital computers. Mercury computing was pivotal in laying the groundwork for modern electronics and computing, demonstrating the potential of electronic components to replace mechanical ones in complex calculations. However, due to the toxic nature of mercury and the complexity of handling it, mercury computing was largely replaced by other technologies like transistors and integrated circuits in the mid-20th century.
