ENIAC
ENIAC was dedicated in 1946 at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. ENIAC (Electrical Numerical Integrator and Calculator) was among the first general computers. A marvel during its time, ENIAC was the size of a room. It used vacuum tubes, resistors, and transistors. Today a laptop can do all that the ENIAC could do. ENIAC was powered down October 2, 1955. Parts of ENIAC are with the Smithsonian and other institutions.
Universal Bar Codes were put into practice in 1974. A package of gum was scanned at the Marsh grocery store in Troy, Ohio. The purchaser was Clyde Dawson, and the store clerk was Sharon Buchanan. Afterward, the package of gum went to the Smithsonian and was put on display.
National Museum of African American History and Culture opened in 2016. Located on the National Mall in Washington, DC, the building houses about 33,000 artifacts. The Smithsonian Institute began construction of the building in 2003. Children can learn more at: https://nmaahc.si.edu/.
Macaroni Box Comptometer
Comptometer, the first accurate adding machine, was patented by Dorr Eugene Felt in 1887. Made from a macaroni box and rubber bands, the prototype earned patent number 371,496. Felt and his partner became financially successful, and he held 46 other patents. The original macaroni box prototype is now part of the Smithsonian collection. Older children could learn more at: Comptometer.