ABSTRACT
The history of the steam engine goes back as far as Hero of Alexandria, who compiled several works on mechanics, including a treatise on pneumatics, in which he described various mechanical devices then existing and some of his own inventions, without indicating which was which. Denys Papin suggested the use of this machine for raising water from mines, throwing bombs, and driving ships by means of paddles. “The principal difficulty,” he wrote, “is that of making these large cylinders.” The desire to economize time and mental effort in numerical computation, and to eliminate human liability to error, has led to the design and construction of numerous mechanical aids to calculation of varying types and degrees of complexity. Early attempts in this direction led to such devices as the abacus and the so-called “Napier’s Bones.”
