Ryhmes of History

Data Storage devices today are capable of preserving mega data in very small devices. In fact now, one can store data in a cyber cloud. Rhymes of history can be used to explain how data storage impacts users to fill a need that has been in existence since ancient times. It has always been important for people to have ways save and communicate information. Oral history was the first method preserving and communicating important information and the most significant of this that comes to mind for me is how the words of the bible were communicated and saved by oral history until they could be written down. Following oral history, the earliest form of data storage known was paintings and carvings on cave walls Pictures and symbols were used to preserve data initially. (http://www.moah.org/exhibits/archives/brains/ancient.html).

Carving and painting of pictures was time consuming and required a lot of space. Hieroglyphics was the early version of alphabet writing used by the Egyptians to make communicating and storing data in writing more efficient and more compact. The Chinese created a system of writing using pictures and symbols. About 3,000 years ago the alphabet was designed by the Phoenicians and was revised later by the Greeks and Romans. Structures and objects also were built for the purpose of communicating and storing significant data. Ancient temples and tools such as the slide rule are examples of these.

It is clear that communication and storage of data has always been a need for humans. As time progressed, methods of storing data became more uniform, miniature, and portable. Today, humans are capable of storing data in cyber clouds which have replaced older devices. Punchcards used perforated paper storing patterns in 1725. In 1846, punched paper tape was used which miniaturized the cards. The selection tube was designed as a form of computer memory in 1946 and during the 1950s; magnetic tapes were used to store more data in smaller places. Then, in 1963, the compact tapes were introduced and again could hold more data in a smaller device. Since then, we have moved from the floppy disc to flash drives and now storage of data in clouds. When one looks back through the long progression of data communication and storage means, the idea of the need for more efficient devices that could be miniaturized, portable, and hold significant amounts of data is a strong pattern. One can see the rhymes of history unfold when considering human need to communicate and store data. 
Ancient Forms of Data Storage. Retrieved on April 9, 2011 from http://www.moah.org/exhibits/archives/brains/ancient.html.

            History of Data Storage. Retrieved on April 9, 2011 from http://gadgets.fosfor.se/history-of-data-storage/