Ross Perot is a collector. He once bought a copy of the Magna Carta in 1984. But more intriguingly, he also bought and resurrected ENIAC, the world’s first electronic computer.
ENIAC stands for the “Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer” and was conceived of during World War II as a way for artillerymen to calculate the trajectory of bullets. It is an absolutely massive machine weighing in at 27 tons and occupying 1,800 square feet when fully assembled. Construction began in 1943, but by the time it was finished in 1945, the war was over. The Army kept a tight lid on things at first. Even the maintenance manual (below) remained classified until 1946. So what did the United States Army do with this marvel of technology? They used it to design the first hydrogen bomb. Then, in 1955, they threw the thing away.
via Gizmodo
