Masterminds of Punched Card Data Processing: Herman Hollerith and John Billings

Abstract

Herman Hollerith was an American inventor and engineer who played a significant role in the development of computing and information processing systems. He is best known for inventing the punched card tabulating machine, which was used for processing data and performing calculations. This invention laid the foundation for modern data processing and greatly influenced the development of early computers. Hollerith’s work eventually led to the formation of the company that would later become IBM. (Courtesy of ChatGPT.) John Shaw Billings was a prominent American librarian, physician, and the first director of the New York Public Library. He is best known for his significant contributions to the field of medical librarianship and the organization of medical information. Billings was instrumental in the development of the Library of the Surgeon General’s Office, which later became the National Library of Medicine. He played a key role in expanding its collection and making it a comprehensive resource for medical literature. (ChatGPT does not mention his contributions to the census or punched card data processing.)