Figure 1-7. The abacus, the most widely used computing device.
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THE AZTEC CALENDAR AND OTHER UNNAMED DATA PROCESSING
TECHNIQUES
The Aztec calendar, used around 1000 AD, in Mexico and Central America, was
based on the 52-year cycle of the planet Venus. Once deciphered, it was found to be a
calendar of amazing accuracy. The Aztec calendar could, in a manner of speaking, be
considered the world's first hard disk. This brief survey of early data processing is by no
means comprehensive. It is only intended to give you a feel for the fact that data
processing did not suddenly occur in modern times. In the next section, we take a
quantum leap into the 17th century and the machine-assisted phase.
Figure 1-8. The Aztec calendar, a calculating device of amazing accuracy.
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