Award-winning author Don Brown explores computers and technology in this installment of the Big Ideas That Changed the World series Machines That Think explores machines from ancient history to today that perform a multitude of tasks, from making mind-numbing calculations to working on assembly lines to guiding spaceships to the moon. Machines That Think includes fascinating looks at the world's earliest calculators, the birth of computer programming, and the arrival of smartphones. Contributors discussed include Muhammad ibn Mūsā al-Khwārizmī, Ada Lovelace, Alan Turing, and Bill Gates. From the abacus to artificial intelligence, machines through the ages have pushed the boundaries of human capability and creativity. Big Ideas That Changed the World is a graphic novel series that celebrates the hard-won succession of ideas that ultimately changed the world. Humor, drama, and art unite to tell the story of events, discoveries, and ingenuity over time that led humans to come up with a big idea and then make it come true.