Abacus

The Chinese Abacus The abacus, a very important invention, was invented in Ancient China. We still use abacus but know it is known as a calculator. The abacus is a wooden frame with rows of wood along which beads are slid. One famous mathematician named Cheng Dawei in ancient China invented the Abacus. The abacus was invented around 2600BC by the Chinese. A typical abacus has 13 columns that are divided into two with each column having two beads on top and five at the bottom. The abacus was invented because there was a time when written numbers did not exist. The earliest counting device was the human fingers. All kind of natural items like pebbles and twigs were used to help count. Merchants who traded goods not only needed a way to count goods they bought and sold, but also to calculate the cost of those goods. The abacus is one of many counting devices invented to help count large numbers. It was also used to keep take of numbers. It works by sliding the beads left and right to find the calculation. It uses a place-value notational system with multiples of 10. The Chinese abacus did not change from early to late Chinese civilization, but in the other civilizations they may have changed. The Chinese abacus has developed in to the calculates now. They still sell them in some stores, but there are for little kids Even in the prevalent use of the modern electronic calculator, abacus is still being used in addition and subtraction for convenience. The abacus has not really changed overtime, now the calculators are used most of the time. The abacus is used the same way. If you are asking how the calculator is used,then that is something TOTALLY different. Abacuses were a very important tool in math and still is for the Chinese people. Ancient China were the first one to start making them, then Ancient Egypt started then India. After all of the civilizations made abacuses. Now there are the calculators!
Bibliography

Bibliography: http://www.ideafinder.com/history/inventions/abacus.htm http://www.ee.ryerson.ca/~elf/abacus/history.html http://warrensburg.k12.mo.us/math/abacus/emily.html http://kaleidoscope.cultural-china.com/en/137Kaleidoscope6.html THE ABACUS THE PLACE VALUE FOR THE ABACUS By Hibah R.