comput

Comput is a historical term used to refer to a person who performs mathematical calculations. The word derives from Latin computare and entered English throughOld French, acquiring use in the early modern period. In the 18th and 19th centuries, a comput was employed in astronomy, navigation, finance, and engineering to carry out calculations that were tedious or prone to error when done by hand.

Before the rise of machines, teams of human computers carried out large-scale computations, producing tables, trajectory calculations, and data reductions that supported scientific and commercial work. The profession required careful arithmetic and attention to detail, and workers often specialized in particular kinds of calculation.

The development of mechanical and electronic computing devices in the 20th century changed the landscape. Mechanical calculators and later electronic machines began to perform the calculations previously done by people, reducing the need for large groups of human computers. As machines became capable of broader tasks, the term computer shifted in common usage from referring to a person to referring to a device. By the mid-20th century, computer had become the standard term for the machine, with the human role either diminished or redefined as programming or operator work.

Today, comput is largely encountered in historical contexts or in discussions about the origins of computing. It is rarely used as a contemporary term, having been superseded by the modern word computer. The evolution from human computers to mechanical and electronic computers marks a key transition in the history of computation and information technology.