Russell A. Kirsch (born 1929) led a team of colleagues which, between 1947 and 1950, created America’s first internally programmable computer, the Standards Eastern Automatic Computer (SEAC). By 1957 Kirsch and his team had invented a scanner which, using the computing power of SEAC, converted photographs to digital images. This breakthrough created the basis for satellite imaging, CAT scans, bar codes, and desktop publishing.

Walden 3 months old – Scanned in 1957

The first image ever scanned on this machine was a 5 cm square photograph of Kirsch’s then-three-month-old son, Walden. The black and white image had a resolution of 176 pixels on a side. Technically, this is the very first digital photograph – all these years later, digital cameras are only just beginning to have the full capabilities of film cameras.

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