A computer that processes analog data is known as an analog computer. Analog computers store information in physical quantities in a continuous format and use measurements to perform computation.

The invention of the computer is often articulated like a three-act play: the idea of the computer arrives, then there is the process of how to make the computer and, finally, there is the creation.

A steel bar pivots. A spring stretches. Then, with a small shove, the whole setup flips into a new state and stays there until the next push. That simple motion sits at the heart of a mechanical ...