Abacus

Long before the invention of the electronic calculator or the computer, people counted and did calculations with a device called an abacus. On this instrument, calculations are made with beads, or counters, instead of numerals. The beads are arranged on wires stretched across a frame. Each wire represents the ones, tens, hundreds, and so on.

The abacus is an ancient device to help solve math problems.

The abacus was probably invented in Mesopotamia by an ancient group of people known as Sumerians. The ancient Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, and Chinese all used the abacus as well.

In about AD 700 the Hindus invented a numeral system that made adding with written numbers as easy as adding on an abacus.

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The Arabs soon adopted this system, and they introduced it into Europe more than 1,000 years ago. As written calculations became easier, the abacus passed out of use in Europe. But it continues to be used by people in China, Japan, and the Middle East.