Computing · 1617
Napier's bones
Numbered rods that reduce multiplication to reading off sums.
John Napier published these engraved rods in Rabdologia in 1617. Laid side by side, they turned long multiplication into a sequence of single-digit additions and directly inspired the first mechanical calculator.
What it built on 2
Related measurements
The dashed line marks when it first worked.
Computation per constant dollar, 1850-2006 Latest: 7.3B million units of computer power per 2006 $ (2003) Source: Nordhaus 2007, Two Centuries of Productivity Growth in Computing, J. Econ. Hist. 67(1), Table 6