Sign-In
Cart
The Paper Computer Unfolded: A Twenty-First Century Guide to the Bell Labs CARDIAC (CARDboard Illustrative Aid to Computation), the LMC (Little Man Co
Paperback
ISBN13: 9781537421131
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Published: Aug 22 2017
Pages: 256
Weight: 0.91
Height: 0.54 Width: 6.69 Depth: 9.61
Language: English
The Paper Computer Unfolded reveals the untold true story of three fully programmable computers that were made of nothing more than paper, cardboard, a bit of glue, and a lot of imagination.
From transistors to lasers, from radio astronomy to the solar battery cell, and from the C programming language to information theory, through much of the twentieth century Bell Telephone Laboratories was the birthplace of the future. But just as important as what the scientists and mathematicians at Bell Labs invented were their clever promotional efforts describing the nature of their work. For instance, in the 1960s Bell distributed self-promotional advertisements in the form of free scientific and technology kits to teachers and students in middle and high schools nationwide. One kit focused on transistors; another, on solar energy; and yet another, on crystals and light.
By the end of the sixties, many high school students received their first exposure to computers courtesy of the Understanding Computers Bell Labs kit. Inside was a strange-looking device constructed out of paper and die-cut cardboard: the CARDboard Illustrative Aid to Computation (CARDIAC), a fully programmable computer created by a visionary Bell mathematician. The single-address, single-accumulator-based CARDIAC needed (rather fittingly) just a single power source to run programs on its hardware: you. Hand-operated, no electricity required. With the relative scarcity of electronic computers and the expense of computer time, there was perhaps no better teaching tool than the CARDIAC.
The story of the paper computer, however, doesn't end with the CARDIAC; in fact, it probably doesn't even begin with it. Several years before Bell Labs released their Understanding Computers kit, a young Massachusetts Institute of Technology doctoral student developed his own instructional model: the Little Man Computer (LMC). With a design and instruction set quite similar to the CARDIAC, the LMC--requiring nothing more than paper and pencil to run programs--quickly caught on at MIT, where it was taught to all undergraduates studying computers. Decades later, the LMC paradigm, in various incarnations, still persists in computer science curricula around the country.
And improbably, despite the ascension and growing availability of cheap microcomputers by the late 1970s, a third paper computer, called the Instructo, was patented and released. If the CARDIAC was a product of the research lab and the LMC a product of the ivory tower, the Instructo was a true product of the classroom: it was developed by a prolific mathematics teacher who knew a thing or two about teaching computers to middle and high school students. Vastly different from the other two machines, the Instructo Paper Computer (IPC) has a large instruction set and multiple registers and switches powering its cardboard components. But like the CARDIAC and the LMC, the IPC models a von Neumann architecture, albeit also without the need for an electric power source.
Tracing their origins to the early calculating machines of Pascal and Babbage, through the groundbreaking computational theories of Turing and von Neumann, to the first electromechanical and electronic computers, and finally to the influence of other instructional models like the TUTorial Automatic Computer (TUTAC) and the infamous paperclip computer, The Paper Computer Unfolded is the most thoroughly researched book available on the design and development of the CARDIAC, the LMC, and the IPC.
Mark Jones Lorenzo's eminently readable book, which fuses the technical jargon of a computer manual with the prose of a true page-turner, also contains many example paper computer programs written in both machine and assembly language, code listings of emulators for all three machines, as well as cartoon illustrations paying homage to the innovative CARDIAC manual.
Also in
General Computers
All Data Are Local: Thinking Critically in a Data-Driven Society
Loukissas, Yanni Alexander
Paperback
Comptia Network+ Certmike: Prepare. Practice. Pass the Test! Get Certified!: Exam N10-008
Chapple, Mike
Zacker, Craig
Paperback
Interactive Theorem Proving and Program Development: Coq'art: The Calculus of Inductive Constructions
Castéran, Pierre
Bertot, Yves
Hardcover
R for Data Science: Import, Tidy, Transform, Visualize, and Model Data
Wickham, Hadley
Grolemund, Garrett
Paperback
The Reverse Centaur's Guide to Life After AI: How to Think about Artificial Intelligence--Before It's Too Late
Doctorow, Cory
Paperback
The Agi Chronicles: The Inside Story of the Race to Create an Artificial Superintelligence
Roose, Kevin
Hardcover
Designing Data-Intensive Applications: The Big Ideas Behind Reliable, Scalable, and Maintainable Systems
Riccomini, Chris
Kleppmann, Martin
Paperback
The Year in Tech, 2027: The Insights You Need from Harvard Business Review
Review, Harvard Business
Davenport, Thomas H.
Chamorro-Premuzic, Tomas
Paperback
AI for Good: How Real People Are Using Artificial Intelligence to Fix Things That Matter
Tyrangiel, Josh
Hardcover
If Anyone Builds It, Everyone Dies: Why Superhuman AI Would Kill Us All
Yudkowsky, Eliezer
Soares, Nate
Hardcover
Human Raised: Nurturing Connection, Curiosity & Lifelong Learning in the Age of AI
Suskind, Dana, MD
Hardcover
The Eureka Machine: Why AI Is the Key to Unlocking a New Era of Scientific Discoveries
Socher, Richard
Hardcover
Hbr's 10 Must Reads on AI (with Bonus Article How to Win with Machine Learning by Ajay Agrawal, Joshua Gans, and AVI Goldfarb)
Davenport, Thomas H.
Iansiti, Marco
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
The Year in Tech, 2026: The Insights You Need from Harvard Business Review
Anthony, Scott D.
Webb, Amy
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
CompTIA Network+ Certification All-in-One Exam Guide, Ninth Edition (Exam N10-009)
Weissman, Jonathan S.
Paperback
The AI Con: How to Fight Big Tech's Hype and Create the Future We Want
Hanna, Alex
Bender, Emily M.
Hardcover
Fans First: Change The Game, Break the Rules & Create an Unforgettable Experience
Cole, Jesse
Paperback
Generative Ai: The Insights You Need from Harvard Business Review
Cremer, David De
Review, Harvard Business
Mollick, Ethan
Paperback
A Giant Leap: How AI Is Transforming Healthcare and What That Means for Our Future
Wachter, Robert
Hardcover
AI Literacy in Any Class: Preparing Students to Thrive in an AI Future in Any Grade Level or Content Area
Miller, Matt
Paperback
Obsolete: The AI Industry's Trillion Dollar Race to Replace Us--And How to Stop It
Lovely, Garrison
Paperback
Fundamentals of Data Engineering: Plan and Build Robust Data Systems
Reis, Joe
Housley, Matt
Paperback
Minecraft: Guide Collection 4-Book Boxed Set (Updated): Survival (Updated), Creative (Updated), Redstone (Updated), Combat
The Official Minecraft Team
Mojang Ab
Hardcover
Love Machines: How Artificial Intelligence Is Transforming Our Relationships
Muldoon, James
Hardcover
Atlas of AI: Power, Politics, and the Planetary Costs of Artificial Intelligence
Crawford, Kate
Paperback
AI Snake Oil: What Artificial Intelligence Can Do, What It Can't, and How to Tell the Difference
Narayanan, Arvind
Kapoor, Sayash
Paperback
AI with Intention: Principles and Action Steps for Teachers and School Leaders
Frontier, Tony
Paperback
Python Crash Course, 3rd Edition: A Hands-On, Project-Based Introduction to Programming
Matthes, Eric
Paperback
AP Computer Science Principles Premium, 2027: 6 Practice Tests + Comprehensive Review + Online Practice
Reichelson, Seth
Paperback
An Illustrated Guide to AI Agents: Concepts and Code for Building Agents with Llms, Tools, and Memory
Grootendorst, Maarten
Alammar, Jay
Paperback
Hbr's 10 Must Reads on Artificial Intelligence, Updated and Expanded (Featuring How AI Can Help Managers Think Through Problems by Elisa Farri and Gab
Davenport, Thomas H.
Agrawal, Ajay
Review, Harvard Business
Paperback
The Thinking Machine: Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the World's Most Coveted Microchip
Witt, Stephen
Hardcover
Hands-On Machine Learning with Scikit-Learn and Pytorch: Concepts, Tools, and Techniques to Build Intelligent Systems
Géron, Aurélien
Paperback
The Black Swan: Second Edition: The Impact of the Highly Improbable: With a New Section: On Robustness and Fragility
Taleb, Nassim Nicholas
Paperback
We Are as Gods: A Survival Guide for the Age of Abundance
Kotler, Steven
Diamandis, Peter H.
Hardcover
Embedded Systems with ARM Cortex-M Microcontrollers in Assembly Language and C: Fourth Edition
Zhu, Yifeng
Paperback
CompTIA Tech+ Certification All-in-One Exam Guide, Third Edition (Exam FC0-U71)
Wempen, Faithe
Paperback
Artificial Intelligence: A Guide for Thinking Humans (with a New Preface)
Mitchell, Melanie
Paperback
AP Computer Science a Premium, 13th Edition: Prep Book with 6 Practice Tests + Comprehensive Review + Online Practice (2026)
Teukolsky, Roselyn, M. S.
Carman, Chris
Paperback
Human + Machine, Updated and Expanded: Reimagining Work in the Age of AI
Wilson, H. James
Daugherty, Paul R.
Hardcover
Hands-On Large Language Models: Language Understanding and Generation
Alammar, Jay
Grootendorst, Maarten
Paperback
Guilty Pleasure: The Pornification of the Internet, the Economy, and Everything Else
Nilsson, Patricia
Hardcover
Power and Prediction: The Disruptive Economics of Artificial Intelligence
Gans, Joshua
Goldfarb, Avi
Agrawal, Ajay
Hardcover
Fundamentals of Software Architecture: A Modern Engineering Approach
Richards, Mark
Ford, Neal
Paperback
The Empty Center: Permission, Connection, and What We Build When the Future is Uncertain
Drumwright, Hayes
Hardcover
The Problem with Personalization: How Advertisers Learned to Make and Break Us from Ancient Times to the AI Age
Turow, Joseph
Hardcover
Minecraft: Exploded Builds: Medieval Fortress: An Official Mojang Book
The Official Minecraft Team
Mojang Ab
Paperback
Tubes: A Journey to the Center of the Internet with a New Introduction by the Author
Blum, Andrew
Paperback
AI Projects with Raspberry Pi: High-Performance Artificial Intelligence for Robotics, Security, Home Automation, and Vision
Jepson, Brian
Hattersley, Lucy
Paperback
RHCSA Red Hat Enterprise Linux 10: Training and Exam Preparation Guide (EX200), Fourth Edition
Ghori, Asghar
Paperback
You Look Like a Thing and I Love You: How Artificial Intelligence Works and Why It's Making the World a Weirder Place
Shane, Janelle
Paperback
The Empty Center: Permission, Connection, and What We Build When the Future is Uncertain
Drumwright, Hayes
Paperback
The Coming Wave: Technology, Power, and the Twenty-First Century's Greatest Dilemma
Suleyman, Mustafa
Hardcover
Designing Machine Learning Systems: An Iterative Process for Production-Ready Applications
Huyen, Chip
Paperback
Site Reliability Engineering: How Google Runs Production Systems
Leng, Christof
Beyer, Betsy
Jones, Chris
Paperback
AI Snake Oil: What Artificial Intelligence Can Do, What It Can't, and How to Tell the Difference
Kapoor, Sayash
Narayanan, Arvind
Hardcover
Artificial Intelligence All-In-One for Dummies
Mueller, John Paul
Massaron, Luca
Minnick, Chris
Paperback
The Death of Expertise: The Campaign Against Established Knowledge and Why It Matters
Nichols, Tom
Paperback
Graphic Artists Guild Handbook, 17th Edition: Pricing & Ethical Guidelines
The Graphic Artists Guild
Paperback
Minecraft: Roll for Adventure: The Temple of the Charged Creeper
Forbeck, Matt
Forbeck, Marty
Hardcover
The Devops Handbook, 2nd Edition: How to Create World-Class Agility, Reliability, & Security in Technology Organizations
Debois, Patrick
Kim, Gene
Humble, Jez
Paperback
The Return on AI: From Promise to Profit in the Age of Intelligent Business
Sawhney, Mohanbir
Mittal, Ashwin
Paperback
Comptia A+ Complete Study Guide, 2-Volume Set: Volume 1 Core 1 Exam 220-1201 and Volume 2 Core 2 Exam 220-1202
Buhagiar, Jon
Docter, Quentin
Paperback
Navigeren door het labyrint: Een handleiding voor het beheer van data
Sebastian-Coleman, Laura
Paperback
R for Data Science: Import, Tidy, Transform, Visualize, and Model Data
Grolemund, Garrett
Cetinkaya-Rundel, Mine
Wickham, Hadley
Paperback
AI for Educators: Learning Strategies, Teacher Efficiencies, and a Vision for an Artificial Intelligence Future
Miller, Matt
Paperback
What Is Intelligence?: Lessons from AI about Evolution, Computing, and Minds
Aguera Y. Arcas, Blaise
Paperback
More Human: How the Power of AI Can Transform the Way You Lead
Hougaard, Rasmus
Carter, Jacqueline
Hardcover
Evals for AI Engineers: Systematically Measuring and Improving AI Applications
Shankar, Shreya
Husain, Hamel
Paperback
Microsoft 365 Excel All-In-One for Dummies
Ringstrom, David H.
Alexander, Michael
Kusleika, Dick
Paperback