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# 52

THE WORLD'S LATEST COMPUTER

1 One of the many fathers of computing, that most successful of industries, was Charles Babbage, a 19th century British mathematician. Exasperated by errors in the mathematical tables that were widely used as calculation aids at the time, Babbage dreamed of building a mechanical engine that could produce flawless tables automatically. But his attempts (1) to make such a machine in the 1820s failed, and the significance of his work was only rediscovered this century.

2 This year, at last, the first set (2) of printed tables should emerge from a calculating "difference engine" built to Babbage's design. But the realisation of his dream will also underscore the extent to which (3) he was. a man born ahead of his time.

3 The effort to prove that Babbage's designs were logically and practically sound (4) began in 1985, when a team of researchers at the Science Museum in London set out (5) to build a difference engine in time for the 200th anniversary of Babbage's birth in 1992 ….(They) constructed a monstrous device of bronze, iron and steel. It was 11 feet long, seven feet tall, weighed three tons, cost around £300,000 ($500,000) and took a year to piece together. And it worked perfectly, cranking out (6) successive values of seventh order polynomial equations to 31 significant figures. But it was incomplete. To save money, an entire section of the machine, the printer, was omitted.

4 To Babbage, the printer was a vital part of the design. Even if the engine produced the correct answers, there was still the risk that a transcription or typesetting (7) error would result in the finished mathematical tables being inaccurate. The only way to guarantee error free tables was to automate the printing process as well. So his plans included specifications for a printer almost as complicated as the calculating engine itself, with adjustable margins, two separate fonts, and the ability to print in two, three or four columns.

5 In January, after years of searching for a sponsor for the printer, the Science Museum announced that a backer (8) had been found. Nathan Myhrvold, the chief technology officer at Microsoft, agreed to pay for its construction (which is expected to cost £225,000). Construction of the printer has begun in full view of the public at the Science Museum.

6 It is a nice irony that Babbage's plans should be realised only thanks to an infusion of cash from a man who got rich in the computer revolution that Babbage helped to foment (9). More striking still, even using 20th century manufacturing technology the engine will have cost over £ 500,000 to build. That suggests that, even had Babbage succeeded (10) , a Victorian computer revolution based on mechanical technology would not necessarily have followed.

Vocable (7 / 1/ 1999) The Economist

(1) an attempt : une tentative
(2) a set : un ensemble
(3) will underscore the extent to which : soulignera dans quelle mesure
(4) sound = correct, valid
(5) to set out = (here) to begin
(6) to crank out : (here) produire en série
(7) typesetting : typographie
(8) a backer = a sponsor
(9) to foment = (here ) to create
(10) even had Babbage succeeded = even if Babbage had succeeded

UNDERSTANDING THE TEXT

1 Study how the following words are built :
flawless = flaw (défaut) + suffix less meaning without. e.g. friendless.
sucessful. = success + suffix ful meaning full of e.g. hopeful.
How would you say that…?

somebody has no money >> he is …
somebody has no home >> he is …
somebody has no power >> he is …
something has no meaning >>it is …
somebody has power >>he is …
a telephone has no cord >>it is …
something is dangerous >>it is … ( use harm)
something is very practical >>it is … (use use)
petrol contains no lead >> it is …

Note 1: do not mix less (suffix) with less (… than) in a comparative meaning moins ( … que): A diesel engine consumes less fuel (than a petrol one).
Note 2: there are other ways to say without: for instance 'free from' (e.g. free from vibrations = without vibrations) or -free combined with a noun ( e.g. a trouble-free rocket launch = a rocket launch which took place without any problem/ trouble.) Find a similar combination in paragraph 4.

2 Read the first sentence of paragraphs 1,2,3,5: match the paragraph number with the fact the paragraph expresses with and the date it refers to:
Facts. a: mathematical tables are printed - b: some people begin building a machine -c: a sponsor is found - d: Babbage's life- e: Babbage was born around 1800.
Dates. 1: 19th century - 2: 1985 - 3: early 1999 - 4: later in 1999. [Do not forget that the text was written in 1999]

3 Answer the questions.
§1
" What do we learn about Babbage? (when he lived, his profession, what he wanted to build…) " Was his successful in his attempt? " Do you think his job has had an influence over other 19th century researchers?
§2
" What kind of a machine has just been built? " What is this machine for? " What does this prove about Babbage?
§3
" What did a team of researchers try to prove? " On what occasion did they decide to build the machine? " What does the calculator look like (materials used, its size) ? " "It took a year to piece (it) together". What does this mean? " Show that the calculator works correctly. " What problem is still unsolved?
§4
" What risk is mentioned ? What solution had Babbage thought of? " What are the main features of the printer?
§5
" Who(m) did the science Museum look for? " Did they easily find this sponsor? " What do we know about this sponsor? " What is the Museum's team doing at the moment?
§6
" What made it possible to realise Babbage's plans? " How did this man get rich? " What part did Babbage play in the history of computers? " How much does the whole machine cost? Does this seem to be a large or a small sum of money? " According to the journalist, could a mechanical computer be a good solution? Why not? " Paragraphs 1 to 5 state facts and para 6 is rather about the journalist's comment about the machine. Yes or no? Give examples showing the journalist's point of view.

LANGUAGE STUDY

1 Use of tenses

a. Compare:
* In January the Museum announced …
* Construction has begun.
Which of the two sentences a/ totally refers to the past ? b/ shows a connection with the present?

b. Use the right tense

• Babbage (to begin) working on his calculator in the 1820s…
• but he (to die) before it (to be) finished.
• A few years ago, the Science Museum ( to decide) to construct Babbage's calculator.
• Since then, visitors ( to be able) to see it working out complicated calculations.
• In January 1999, The Museum (to find) a sponsor for the printer.
• Since January, they ( to be working) on the printer…
• but so far (= until today) they (not / to finish) assembling it.

2 How to express measurements
a. In the text ( §3) pick up the sentence expressing the size of the calculator.
b. Another calculator, the Harvard Mark 1 ( built in 1944) : 16m * 2.6m * 0.6m ( l/h/d)
Express its size and its age.

3 a. Compare this machine with the Harvard Mark 1

Use : recent; old, long, heavy, powerful, fast, efficient (or other adjectives)
Say that one is more…than or …er than the other; and that one is not as (= so) … as the other.

4 Tenses with IF
a. Usual tenses to be found in technical English:

• If the Museum finds a sponsor, they will be able to build the printer.
• If the Museum found a sponsor, they would be able to build the printer.
• Translate these sentences into French. What do you notice about the tenses in both languages?

b. Use the right tense.

• If Babbage (to be living) today, he would perhaps be working for Microsoft.
• If the printer was not built, the machine (to remain) incomplete.
• If you go to London, you (to be able to) see Babbage's 'difference engine'.
• If you (to visit) the Science Museum, you would see this machine.

c. If Babbage had succeeded, a computer revolution would not (necessarily) have followed.

• What do you call the tenses used in this sentence ?
• Does this hypothesis concern the present or the past? Has the condition (Babbage's success) been fulfilled or not?
• Translate the sentence into French. What do you notice about the tenses in both languages?

d. Use the right tense.

• If there has been no faults in mathematical tables, Babbage ( not / to dream) of building the 'difference engine'.
• If Babbage (to have) enough money, he would perhaps have succeeded in building it.
• If Babbage had built his machine, people (to say) he was a genius.
• If the museum ( not / to find) a sponsor, they would not have completed the project.

5 Translation exercise ( paragraph 6).

a. Analyse the first sentence: How many clauses (= propositions) are there? Find out where each one begins and ends.
b. Sentence 2: Pick up the verbs (conjugated or not). What is the tense of the conjugated verb?
c. Sentence 3: Does "A Victorian computer revolution based on …" mean…? a/ une révolution informatique ( qui se passe à l'époque victorienne) fondée sur …? b/ une révolution (de l'informatique de l'époque victorienne) fondée sur … ?.
d. Translate the paragraph into French.

6 Writing exercise

a. Translate or adapt the words between brackets so as to write correct sentences.
1. In the 19th century, Babbage ( to be fed up with) errors in (the ? Ø?) mathematical tables.
2. They ( to use / passive) ( comme, en tant que) calculation aids.
3. Babbage decided ( to produce) ( des tables sans erreurs).
4. He ( not / to succeed).
5. We ( just / to rediscover) the importance of his job.
6. The importance of his job ( to prove) how modern Babbage was
.
b. Improve your first draft:
Link sentences 1 and 2 with a relative pronoun.
Link sentences 2 and 3 expressing consequence.
Link sentences 4 and 5 with although or while.
Link sentences 5 and 6 with a relative pronoun.

7 Oral exercise.
According to you, how far is Babbage the father of computing?
You can express certainty or uncertainty and use:
a. it's quite sure that …- it's undeniable that… - it's obvious that …- it's likely that … - There is no denying that… - he must be …
b. it's doubtful that / whether… - I wonder if … - I doubt that … - it's (very/ highly) unlikely / improbable that…- this may be true but… - he can't be…

===========================================

Divers exercices demandent de comparer cette machine à une autre, le Harvard Mark 1, ou bien de formuler un avis sur celle-ci. Pour ce faire, il pourrait être utile de communiquer quelques informations complémentaires aux étudiants, susceptibles, en plus, de stimuler leur interêt pour ce texte.

La machine de Babbage
Il semble, à lire certains historiens, que le projet de Babbage avait près d'un siècle d'avance sur son époque : c'est un peu comme si, à l'âge des ballons (pas même encore dirigeables) quelqu'un avait conçu, dessiné et commencé à réaliser un avion du type de ceux construits pendant l'entre deux guerres.
Cette machine fut dessinée de manière théorique de 1834 à 1836. Elle devait être munie d'un mécanisme de commande à picots mobiles , composée de 1.000 registres de 50 chiffres doubles, et était structurellement conçue pour exécuter automatiquement des séquences d'opérations sur 1.000 nombres de 50 chiffres à la fois.
Elle machine était composée de cinq ensembles:
1 - un dispositif d'entrée et de sortie,
2 - une unité de contrôle,
3 - un 'magasin', mémoire destinée à recevoir les nombres soumis au calcul et à les stocker comme résultats intermédiaires,
4 - une unité arithmétique (le 'moulin') exécutant les calculs,
5 - une imprimante.
Rentrons dans quelques détails : pour la première fois, Babbage dissocie les fonctions de calcul et de mémoire. Il prévoit surtout un fonctionnement commandé par des programmes sur cartes perforées.. La machine est capable de branchemente conditionnels et peut faire appel à des instructions auxiliaires (des sous routines).
On mesure là à quel point les conceptions de Babbage sont avancées et audacieuses pour le début du 19ème siècle.

Pourquoi Babbage n'a pas inventé l'ordinateur ?
Tout d'abord, l'acquis technologique et le savoir faire technique du milieu du 19ème siècle n'étaient pas à la hauteur des conceptions de Babbage. Celui ci, par certains côtés, était intellectuellement plus proche des années 1920 1930 que de la révolution industrielle et ses machines à vapeur. De plus, il ne disposait pas des outils mathématiques et logiques qui lui auraient permis d'envisager la notion de programme enregistré exprimant symboliquement un algorithme de résolution de problèmes.
En fait, le projet de Babbage appartient à une atmosphère intellectuelle bien différente de celle de 1'avant guerre. Pour son inventeur, la Machine Analytique n'était qu'un énorme instrument de comput dans les mains d'un personnel spécialisé, et l'ordinateur, en tant que tel, était proprement impensable pour Babbage.

Le rêve de Babbage devenu réalité
Les premiers essais de l'IBM ASCC (Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator) eurent lieu en 1943 et la machine devint opérationnelle en 1944. Elle estt connue sous le nom de Harvard Mark I et a fonctionné jusqu'en 1959.
Cette machine impressionnante par la taille mesurait 16 mètres de long, 2,60 m de haut, et faisait 0,60 m de profondeur. Elle pesait 5 tonnes, se composait de 750.000 pièces différentes, et de 850 km de câbles électriques avec 175.000 connexions; il lui fallait 5 tonnes de glace par jour pour la refroidir 1
Le principe de fonctionnement du Harvard Mark I est mécanique avec des relais et des embrayages électromécaniques.. Pour donner une idée de ce qui sépare encore cette machine d'un ordinateur, regardons comment est constitué la zone d'entrée des données à traiter et des constantes: plusieurs commutateurs, semblables à ceux de nos cuisinières, comportant dix positions (0 à 9) que l'on tournait manuellement pour inscrire données et constantes. De plus, ces données ne pouvaient ensuite être modifiées par le programme. Les performances étaient remarquables (pour l'époque). Une addition de deux nombres : 0,2 seconde; une division : 10 secondes; une minute pour le calcul du sinus et 190 secondes pour le calcul du logarithme décimal.

Microtel Flash - Vernon (extraits des numéros 29 à 31)

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