I Can Learn About Calculators and Computers
Kenyon
1961
This lovely gem from the early 1960’s is still sitting in this library’s youth section. No one felt that it was necessary to weed in the advent of portable calculators from the late 1970’s or the advent of personal computers in the late 80’s and 90’s. I can only imagine that perhaps this community the children are stuck in a time warp and waiting for the arrival of radical new technologies like carbon paper, rotary phones and fire. By the way one of the nice little touches of this book is the flyer glued inside detailing the late return fee of 2 cents per day.
13 responses so far ↓
Mary Ellen Petrich // May 15, 2009 at 8:51 pm |
This book would make a fine addition to the book collection at the Computer History Museum. Children’s books are often particularly interesting to the curators.
http://www.computerhistory.org/collections/search/?s=text+book&type=all&t=objects
gumbogirl // May 16, 2009 at 10:22 pm |
I like the abacus-like cover design.
rick roche // May 17, 2009 at 10:50 am |
You can not argue that some grandparent was given a hand-me-down computer to justify keeping this one!
Sarah Justice // May 20, 2009 at 1:14 pm |
I have one that’s even better! How can I post it on here?
marykelly48 // May 20, 2009 at 3:09 pm |
Email me some pictures and bib data if you have it! maryk410@hotmail.com or hhibner@yahoo.com. Thanks!
marykelly48 // May 23, 2009 at 1:26 pm |
Email a scanned cover and send it to me at librarymary40@yahoo.com and we will get it on the site.
John Mark Ockerbloom // May 21, 2009 at 11:07 am |
I agree with Mary Ellen Petrich: this is worth saving, though probably in a computer history collection rather than a public library. A quick check of the copyright office records doesn’t turn up a renewal for this title (as was required at the time), so perhaps it could even be scanned and put online, at the Computer History Museum, the Internet Archive, or some other useful place.
Pamela Lieber // May 21, 2009 at 10:12 pm |
I could shelve this one next to my copy of Isaac Asimov’s book on how to use a slide rule! I’m a science/tech geek as well as an MLIS, so I appreciate this kind of stuff. Reminds me of the old plug-in-the-wall four function calculator that cost as much as my iPod nano.
Mary Ellen Petrich // May 23, 2009 at 4:47 pm |
I just got my first slide rule and checked out a copy of Isaac Asimov’s book on how to use a slide rule from my university library. They still have a large selection of book on how to use a slide rule.
Hans // June 1, 2009 at 12:39 am |
Hey, yeah! When I was young(er) (after the advent of the pocket calculator) I had the chance to use a slide rule. Learning how to use these permanently cemented logarithms in my mind. Very much a useful thing.
Hans
Cathy // July 25, 2009 at 2:46 pm |
What’s a slide rule? Are they those things that are a ruler in the shape of a half circle?
haha, forgive me I was born in the 80s and went to school in the 90s/2000s…the oldest instrument I remember using in math were the calculators that weren’t scientific, or perhaps the pencils that had a piece of metal on them in order to draw a circle. Uhh, yeah I have no idea what those were called either. I was also horrible at math. Most kids are nowadays because we are taught to let machines do all the work for us!
MM // July 26, 2009 at 4:03 pm |
No, the half circle things are protractors. A slide rule is a straight line, and had a slide that went accross it. The internet definitions say it was a pre-electric calculator form of calculator, if that makes any sense.
MM // July 26, 2009 at 4:04 pm |
PS the pencil thing is a compass. I remember those well but never used a slide rule either.