Question: Which of the following is the first calculating device?
A Calculator
B Turning machine
C Pascaline
D Abacus
Answer: Abacus
| Name of Calculating Device | Developer | Year of Invention | Description |
| Abacus | Ancient civilizations | Circa 2000 BCE | An ancient counting tool that uses beads on rods to perform arithmetic calculations. |
| Napier’s Bones | John Napier | 1617 | A set of numbered rods used for multiplication and division, an early form of slide rule. |
| Slide Rule | Various inventors | 1620s onwards | A mechanical analog device for performing mathematical calculations, including multiplication and division. |
| Pascaline | Blaise Pascal | 1642 | One of the earliest mechanical calculators capable of addition and subtraction. |
| Leibniz’s Calculator | Gottfried Leibniz | 1673 | A mechanical calculator capable of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. |
| Difference Engine | Charles Babbage | 1822 (Designed) | A mechanical general-purpose calculator designed to automatically compute polynomial functions. |
| Analytical Engine | Charles Babbage | 1837 (Designed) | A mechanical general-purpose computer that included an arithmetic logic unit (ALU) and could perform complex calculations. |
| Jacquard Loom | Joseph Marie Jacquard | 1801 | Not a calculating device per se but used punch cards for automated textile pattern weaving. |
| Comptometer | Dorr E. Felt | 1887 | A mechanical adding and calculating machine that greatly improved speed and accuracy. |
| Marchant Calculator | Burroughs Corporation | 1911 | An early mechanical calculator designed for business and accounting purposes. |
| ENIAC | John W. Mauchly | 1945 | One of the earliest electronic general-purpose computers, capable of complex calculations. |
| UNIVAC I | John Presper Eckert | 1951 | One of the first commercially produced electronic computers, used for various calculations. |
| IBM 704 | IBM | 1954 | A powerful early computer known for scientific and engineering calculations. |
| Electronic Calculators | Various inventors | Late 1960s onwards | Compact electronic devices for performing a wide range of mathematical calculations. |
| Personal Computers | Various inventors | 1970s onwards | General-purpose computers used for a wide range of calculations, data processing, and more. |