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In 1939, Dr. John V. Atanasoff and his assistant Clifford Berry, constructed the first electronic digital computer. Their machine, the Atanasoff-Berry-Computer (ABC) provided the foundation for the advances in electronic digital computers. These computers processed binary bits of information and performed mathematical computations for science projects.
The invention of the first mainframe computer led to a career field established as Computer Science. The category of Computer Science was given because computer usage was strictly related to the science field and the processing of scientific data. -
In 1944, a leap in computer processing would take place with the ENIAC computer. The ENIAC Computer is the prototype from which all modern computers evolved from. The ENIAC comprised thirty separate units and weighed more than thirty tons and consumed 200 kilowatts of electrical power. The ENIAC was still used for the processing of scientific data in the field of ballistics and played a role in the development of the atomic bomb.
On the horizon was the concept of applying computers in other areas of education, business and everyday life. The concept of creating business applications would emerge with IBM creating the 8-bit punch card system. The processing of punch cards from a business perspective would become known throughout the industry as "information science application". -
In 1952, the evolving punch card system created by IBM would change the way government, business and education would perceive the way that data was to be processed. Punch cards allowed mainframes to read and extract data from computers by reading hole punches. Programmers wrote programs on a mainframe for punch card operations in which the punch card would be read into the program by a card reader to update a database. The database could be a business application, a scientific application or any application.
Business applications were difficult for computer scientists because many didn't have a background in business. The programmers usually had to call in business people and write down notes of how business managers and executives wanted the computer to process information. The computer programmer usually wrote the program without understanding of business concepts at all.
In the late 1950s and 1960s, computers would start to integrate into other areas of society. Accounting, retail sales, transportation and media services would benefit from the advent and use of computers.
There was still a language barrier between programmers and business people who wanted certain applications developed for their business or operation. That would begin to change in 1970. -
With the advent of computer programs for business applications, it became apparent that the communication gap that existed between computer programmers and business people had to be solved. Business people wanted programmers to come up with the ultimate solution for their problems and programmers had a hard time explaining to management what was possible and what was not, technically, possible.
The solution was to design a course of study which merged information technology, business and computer programming. This field was called, Management Information Systems (MIS). The idea was to create a workforce who could bridge the communication and technical gaps between management and computer programmers.
The first courses were taught in as business courses in select colleges in America. The courses started off as electives in the area of business. As the 1970s closed, colleges and business schools would create full four-year programs designed for studies in the field of information systems. -
From 1980 to the present, there has been an explosion of technology in the field of information systems. The integration of the personal computer (PC) into the workplace and homes has made information readily available to all people. The creation of wide area networks, the Internet and distributed processing have changed the way people obtain information.
The concept of Management Information Systems has expanded to include data mining (databases of archived information), data retrieval sciences (critical business data stored on microchips) and technology used in everyday devices such as cell phones, wireless devices that require the passage of important data as well as integrated software for common functions.
The world is living in the Age of Information. Computers have assisted countries into transforming themselves from the industrial revolution into the information age by merging concepts through various management information system applications.
