The first electronic computer was developed at?

Appeared in: AIIMS Raipur - 2017 (shift-2)

Explanation

Pennsylvania because the first general-purpose electronic digital computer, ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer), was designed and built at the University of Pennsylvania's Moore School of Electrical Engineering.
The project was a secret military initiative that started in 1943 to aid the war effort by calculating artillery firing tables for the U.S. Army.
ENIAC's completion in 1945 marked a pivotal moment in computing history, transitioning from electromechanical relays to fully electronic vacuum tubes for computation.

Option A: The Pentagon was the headquarters of the U.S. Department of Defense, which commissioned and used the computer for military calculations, but it was not the academic or engineering institution where the computer was physically built.
Option C: Germany was a pioneer in computing with Konrad Zuse's Z3 computer (1941). However, the Z3 was an electromechanical machine that used relays, not a fully electronic computer which uses vacuum tubes or transistors.
Option D: France did not play a primary role in the development of the very first electronic computers during the 1940s.

Visual 1: Photograph - An image of the ENIAC computer, showing its massive scale with its many panels of vacuum tubes and wiring. This helps learners appreciate the size and complexity of early computers compared to modern devices.

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain History of Computing: First Electronic Computer as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
While this is a general knowledge question, computer literacy is fundamental to modern nursing.
Nurses use computers daily for Electronic Health Records (EHR), medication administration systems (eMAR), patient monitoring, and accessing evidence-based practice guidelines.
Understanding the origins of computing provides context for the rapid technological evolution that has transformed healthcare delivery and patient data management.

How to Approach the Question

This is a factual recall question from the history of technology.
First, identify the key terms in the question: 'first electronic computer' and 'developed at'.
Recall or look up the name and location of the first electronic computer. The most famous example is ENIAC.
Associate ENIAC with its development site, the University of Pennsylvania.
Evaluate the given options. 'Pennsylvania' directly matches the historical location.
Eliminate the other options by recalling their roles: the Pentagon was a user, and Germany's Z3 was electromechanical, not electronic.

Concept Tested & Keywords

Q1IFtNQLkfyqMC6Kw5M-Po

Practise the full AIIMS Raipur - 2017 (shift-2)

Attempt every question from this paper in a timed mock, then review the full solution for each one.