# The First Computer Program

**Authors:** Raúl Rojas  
**arXiv:** [2303.13740](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.13740)  
**Date:** 2023-03-24  
**Summary page:** https://www.summarizepaper.com/en/paper/2303.13740v1/

## Key points

- Charles Babbage sketched the first computer program in history for his Analytical Engine in 1837
- The program consisted of a sequence of arithmetical operations and variable addresses displayed in tabular fashion
- The program computed solutions for a system of two linear equations in two unknowns
- Babbage's Analytical Engine was designed to perform complex calculations automatically using punched cards as input
- Babbage's work paved the way for modern computing technology and his ideas were ahead of their time
- Electronic computers did not become widely available until over a century later
- Charles Babbage's pioneering efforts in computer programming have had an immense impact on our lives and continue to shape our world today.

## Summary

In 1837, Charles Babbage, a renowned mathematician and inventor, sketched the first computer program in history for his Analytical Engine. The program consisted of a sequence of arithmetical operations and the necessary variable addresses (memory locations) of the arguments and the result, displayed in tabular fashion like a program trace. This groundbreaking program computed the solutions for a system of two linear equations in two unknowns. Raúl Rojas further elaborates on this historic moment by explaining that Babbage's Analytical Engine was designed to perform complex calculations automatically using punched cards as input. It was essentially an early version of a mechanical computer that could be programmed to solve various mathematical problems. The significance of Babbage's work cannot be overstated as it paved the way for modern computing technology. His ideas were so far ahead of their time that it wasn't until over a century later that electronic computers became widely available. Today, we owe much to Charles Babbage's pioneering efforts in computer programming and his vision for what would eventually become one of the most transformative technologies in human history. His invention has had an immense impact on our lives and continues to shape our world today.