NATS 1700 Exam 1 2026/2027 – 40+ Questions & Answers | Computer History, ENIAC, Internet & AI

This NATS 1700 Exam 1 2026/2027 study resource provides 40+ questions, answers, definitions, and detailed review topics across 20 pages, focusing on the development of computers and information technology. It begins with the definition and practical uses of computers in business, communication, education, banking, health, and medicine, while also examining social issues associated with computing, including employment, privacy, freedom of expression, centralization, control, and computer-related crime. A substantial part of the document traces the history and evolution of computing technology. Students review the abacus and Charles Babbage's Difference Engine and Analytical Engine, including the latter's memory, processing, input/output, iteration, conditional branching, and use of Jacquard punch cards. The material then examines the Atanasoff-Berry Computer (ABC), ENIAC, John Mauchly, Presper Eckert, John Atanasoff, Clifford Berry, and John von Neumann, with particular attention to the development of electronic digital computing and the stored-program architecture. The guide provides detailed coverage of the four generations of computers. First-generation systems are associated with vacuum tubes and stored programs, with examples including EDVAC, UNIVAC, IBM 650, and IBM 701. Second-generation computers introduce transistors and magnetic-core memory, while the third generation focuses on integrated circuits, IBM System/360, multiprogramming, higher-level programming languages, and minicomputers. Fourth-generation computing examines microprocessors, Intel's 4004 and 8080 processors, the CPU, personal computers, and Moore's Law. Another major section addresses the Internet and World Wide Web. Topics include telecommunications networks, the Internet's innovation, institutional, and commercialization stages, ARPANET, resource sharing, and the historical relationship between computer networking, universities, research centers, and U.S. defense initiatives. Students also review the World Wide Web and fundamental web technologies such as URL, HTML, and HTTP, together with time-sharing, multiprogramming, multitasking, and the emergence of commercially successful minicomputers. The artificial-intelligence section introduces John McCarthy's definition of AI, the Turing Test, ELIZA, knowledge representation, and expert systems. The material discusses early attempts to simulate human conversation and decision-making while identifying limitations involving reasoning, understanding, planning, and learning. These topics provide historical context for understanding how artificial intelligence developed alongside broader advances in computer science. The final pages examine the emergence of personal computing and computer culture, including computer hobbyists, computer liberation movements, the Altair 8800, Homebrew Computer Club, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, Apple II, VisiCalc, and IBM PC. The material connects microprocessor technology with the growth of affordable personal computers and discusses how Apple's early systems and IBM's open architecture helped shape the personal-computer market. The uploaded document identifies the course as NATS 1700 and the assessment as Exam 1 for 2026/2027, but it does not identify a university or institution. For accuracy and stronger SEO quality, a university name should only be added when the institution associated with this specific NATS 1700 course can be reliably established. Relevant Students This document is particularly relevant to NATS 1700 students preparing for Exam 1 in 2026/2027. It can also benefit students taking introductory courses in computer science, information technology, computing history, science and technology studies, or digital technology, especially those reviewing computer generations, Babbage, ENIAC, von Neumann architecture, transistors, integrated circuits, microprocessors, ARPANET, the Internet, artificial intelligence, the Turing Test, early personal computers, Apple, and IBM. Keywords NATS 1700 Exam 1, NATS 1700 Exam 2026, NATS 1700 Exam 2027, NATS 1700 questions and answers, NATS 1700 study guide, NATS 1700 exam preparation, computer history exam, history of computers, evolution of computers, computer generations, Charles Babbage, Difference Engine, Analytical Engine, Atanasoff Berry Computer, ABC computer, ENIAC, John von Neumann, von Neumann architecture, stored program computer, first generation computers, vacuum tube computers, second generation computers, transistors, third generation computers, integrated circuits, fourth generation computers, microprocessors, UNIVAC, IBM 650, IBM System 360, Intel 4004, Intel 8080, Moore's Law, Internet history, ARPANET, World Wide Web, HTML, HTTP, URL, artificial intelligence, AI history, John McCarthy, Turing Test, ELIZA, knowledge representation, expert systems, time sharing, Altair 8800, Homebrew Computer Club, Apple II, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, VisiCalc, IBM PC, computer science questions and answers