Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Instrument
Feature
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Computer
A landmark in the history of science is the invention of computer.
Computer is an electronic device that is designed to work with information.
The term “computer”
is
derived from the Latin term
computare
; this means
to calculate. Computer cannot do anything without a program. Computers
not only help in calculation but also have become integrated components of
many modern instruments. A general-purpose computer has four main
components: the arithmetic logic unit (ALU), the control unit, the memory,
and the input and output devices (collectively termed I/O). These parts are
interconnected by busses, often made of groups of wires. Inside each of
these parts are thousands to trillions of small electrical circuits which can
be turned off or on by means of an electronic switch. The circuits are
arranged in logic gates so that one or more of the circuits may control the
state of one or more of the other circuits. The control unit, ALU, registers,
and basic I/O (and often other hardware closely linked with these) are
collectively known as a central processing unit (CPU). A
is a
device connected to a host computer, but not part of it. It expands the host's
capabilities but does not form part of the core computer architecture. It is
often, but not always, partially or completely dependent on the host
peripheral
Computer and peripheral
