9 ms·

“Computers”, BSA Merit Badge Series (1973)

61 points by dalke 4y ago

dalke 4y ago
Following up on yesterday's "Master's at Arms" badge (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31344293 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31344293 ), I thought people might be interested in what the requirements were for the "Computers" badge for the Boy Scouts of America, nearly 50 years ago. Here are the requirements, from https://archive.org/details/BoyScoutsComputers/page/n5/mode/2up https://archive.org/details/BoyScoutsComputers/page/n5/mode/... : 1. Do the following: a. Give a short history of computers. Describe the major parts of a computer system. Give four different uses of computers. b. Describe the differences between analog and digital computers. Tell the use of each. c. Explain some differences between special- and general-purpose machines. 2. Do the following: a. Tell what a program is and how it is developed. b. Explain the difference between an assembler and a compiler. Tell where each might he used. Describe a source and an object program. c. Use a flowchart diagram to show the steps needed to set up a camp. 3. Do one of the following: a. Prepare flowcharts to find out the average attendance and dues paid at the last five troop meetings. b. Prepare flowcharts to work out a simple arithmetic problem. Explain to your counselor how this program could be stored in a computer. Tell how it could be used again. 4. Do the following: a. Name four input/ output devices for computers. Explain the use of two of them in a system. b. Explain the Hollerith code. Show how your name and address would be punched on a card. 5. Tell the meaning of six of the following: a. memory b. bits c. on-line d. bytes e. microsecond f. address g. channel h. interrupt i. register j. console k. central processing unit 6. Tell the meaning and use of 12 of the following: a. business data processing b. information retrieval c. simulation d. scientific processing e. floating point f. truncation g. fixed point h. accuracy i. input j. record k. output l. file m. software n. instruction o. hardware p. indexing q. loop r. subroutine s. real time t. time sharing u. cybernetics 7. Visit a computer installation. Study how it works. 8. Do the following: a. Explain what each of the following does: design engineer, analyst, customer engineer, operator, programmer, salesman b. Read two pieces of information about computers. Describe what you read. c. Describe jobs in the computer field.
- dylan604 4y ago
  I think this would give one a much more rounded knowledge base than your typical coding boot camp graduate receives.
  - Shared404 4y ago
    Old Scouting manuals are a gold mine for basics on a very wide variety of knowledge. Much of it is outdated, but I still quite enjoy reading through a replica copy of the original BSA handbook.
  - ryandrake 4y ago
    > Explain the difference between an assembler and a compiler. Tell where each might he used. Describe a source and an object program. > Name four input/ output devices for computers. Explain the use of two of them in a system. > Tell the meaning of six of the following: a. memory b. bits c. on-line d. bytes e. microsecond f. address g. channel h. interrupt i. register j. console k. central processing unit > Tell the meaning and use of 12 of the following: a. business data processing b. information retrieval c. simulation d. scientific processing e. floating point f. truncation g. fixed point h. accuracy i. input j. record k. output l. file m. software n. instruction o. hardware p. indexing q. loop r. subroutine s. real time t. time sharing u. cybernetics I think I've interviewed senior software engineer candidates who would not do well with the above tasks.
    - dmurray 4y ago
      > I think I've interviewed senior software engineer candidates who would not do well with the above tasks. You exaggerate. I'll give it a try: Memory is what you need to pass a software engineering interview at a top company. Address is unimportant these days, as everything is on-line - employees can work wherever they like so long as it's in the Bay Area. Channel is how you market your SAAS software. Console is what you do to your colleagues after a round of layoffs. Interrupt is what your manager does.
- dahart 4y ago
  The definition for “on-line” sure changed a lot, that’s the only term in #5 that doesn’t mean the same thing anymore. I got my merit badge in the late 80s after visiting Evans & Sutherland with the troop. They made flight simulators for the government, among other things. At the time, it seemed like the coolest place ever to work, and I’m sure had a major impact on my deciding to study & work in computer graphics. They were still using huge “hard drive” platters like the one the guy is holding in the picture on page 37.
cowmix 4y ago
I was in a computers themed "Explorer Scout" program in the mid-80s (it had some affiliation to the BSA but I'm not sure how) when I was going to high school. One of the benefits of that program was getting your own account on Honeywell's Multics timeshare system.
- mayoff 4y ago
  I was in an Explorer Post that met at Convex Computer Corporation in Dallas, TX in 1986. It was my first exposure to Unix and C programming. A few of us got dial-up access to a Convex C-1 “minisupercomputer”. Then I got in trouble for dialing in just to play Hack. (This was before it became Nethack.)
  - WalterGR 4y ago
    Did Hack really use enough resources for it to be an issue? Or did you get in trouble for using your access to have fun?
    - mayoff 4y ago
      I was dialing in to a system used by dozens of Convex employees to do their jobs. One (or more?) of them ran `ps` and didn't like seeing `hack` in the output during business hours. I don't know if it was really a resource consumption issue.
- NordSteve 4y ago
  Me too! That's how I got my start in tech. I now help run FIRST Robotics Competition events as my way of paying it forward.
version_five 4y ago
I was in cub scouts (this was in Canada, it's for ages 7-10 or so, I don't know how it maps to BSA scouts, it's part of the same Baden Powell originated organization). I did a similar badge in this org which I think was a little more basic, in the 80s. I haven't really thought about it since then, but we had to do some definitions, I think write instructions for some task as in this one, and what strikes me most now is we had some (simple) boolean logic exercises, or had to make examples, I think explained as switches, explaining AND, OR (I dont remember if others were there) as series and parallel and determining whether a light was on. Sounds basic, but having taught intro to programming and intro to circuits many years later, still confusing for many
- Alupis 4y ago
  Cub Scouts is the under-12 youth organization that "feeds" into Boy Scouts. Many, but not all, Boy Scouts started off as Cub Scouts, rising up through the ranks to earn their Webelos before "graduating" into Boy Scouts around age 12. Cub Scouts organize into "Packs" (analogous to a Troop in Boy Scouts), and break off into "Dens" (analogous to Patrols in Boy Scouts). Scouting is an amazing youth experience, both in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts. Unfortunately not all Packs and Troops are created equal, although some "specialize" in certain activities (such as canoeing/kayaking, backpacking, etc). Finding a good Pack or Troop that fits your interests is key.
  - WalterBright 4y ago
    I joined the Boy Scouts at 10 mainly because the Cub Scouts abandoned Wolf Bear Lion Scout as WeBeLoS.
    - Alupis 4y ago
      That's a real shame. In my day, earning your Webelos was quite a life achievement and meant a great deal, for being so young. It was not quite the same magnitude of importance as earning your Eagle, or being inducted into the Order of the Arrow, but it was significant.
willswire 4y ago
As an Eagle Scout, one of the things I’m most grateful for is the merit badge program. You really get a wide exposure to tons of different areas - most of which come with a pamphlet similar to this one. The real value proposition of the BSA is to better serve your community and those around you by becoming well-rounded, and having contextual experience of teamwork dynamics.
- nemo44x 4y ago
  Yeah it’s amazing. So far ahead of it’s time too. I hope they survive.
  - obviouslynotme 4y ago
    As long as you live in the right area and select a good troop, the BSA is still thriving. The real key is to participate in the troop with your son so you can monitor it and help it become better.
    - nemo44x 4y ago
      I agree, you can’t just hope it’s to your standard. I have a young boy too small for scouts still but I plan on taking a leadership role when he’s older. If it’s any good still!
    - _delirium 4y ago
      > select a good troop Also one that fits your preferences, since style and personality varies a lot. I didn't really realize as a kid that you had a choice of which one to join, and just joined the one that met at my school. I only realized when I moved to a new city that there was such a big difference in personality. The two I was in were both pretty friendly and good in a general sense, but totally different in style. One was very "official" and put a lot of emphasis on the various ceremonies, oaths, ranks, uniforms, etc., while the other mostly de-emphasized that and was primarily oriented around monthly camping trips. (In affluent areas there is also a style of troop I'd personally avoid that isn't quite "bad" in the sense of the really dysfunctional ones, but not super great for personal development: the one where everyone is there primarily because they want their kid to put Eagle Scout on their Ivy League college applications...)
WalterBright 4y ago
It's in my 1969 BSA merit badge book, too. I don't know why I never got it, though my first access to a computer was in 1975. At one point I decided to get every merit badge, but lost interest before finishing. In the early 1970s, the BSA underwent a major dumbing down, which contributed to my losing interest. For example, the WeBeLoS rank in Cub Scouts stood for "Wolf Bear Lion Scout". To a boy, that was pretty cool! But by the time I achieved Bear, they changed it to mean "We Will Be Loyal Scouts". Ugh. That just let all the air out of the balloon. What boy wants that rank? The uniforms were changed from cotton that worked great outdoors, to cheap, itchy polyester. Perhaps coincidentally, the scouts stopped wearing the uniforms. They revamped the Boy Scout manual, too, in a miserable way. I kept my old one. I had the 1969 Merit badge book because, you guessed it, they messed up the merit badges, too, to be more like Sesame Street. It just wasn't for me anymore. Grumble, grumble.
- bg4 4y ago
  I'm an Eagle Scout who grew up in the 80s. 'We'll be loyal scouts' was my jam baby.
  - WalterBright 4y ago
    I'm sure there were still plenty of boys for whom it worked. The BSA that I liked, however, had passed into history, much like how chemistry sets were emasculated at about the same time.
    - WalterBright 4y ago
      One think I thank the BSA for is when I moved to Arizona, I thought it was one ugly lifeless brown desert. One of the merit badges required me to identify many types of flora and fauna to a leader while hiking in the desert. It really opened my eyes to the beauty of the Arizona desert, which I grew to love very much. The swimming and lifesaving merit badges also made me confident in the water, which I thank the BSA for giving me the impetus to do. And, of course, the knots have served me well, and I can make fire with one match. I wish the Scouts had taught a lot more woodcraft. They didn't even teach building an emergency shelter.
ben_w 4y ago
I find it surprising and fascinating that OCR was already a thing by this point. What is/was easy and what is/was hard isn’t at all obvious, not even in retrospect.
- convolvatron 4y ago
  it was pretty marginally useful for the longest time, night and day with todays
NegativeLatency 4y ago
https://www.boyscouttrail.com/boy-scouts/meritbadges/computers-merit-badge.asp https://www.boyscouttrail.com/boy-scouts/meritbadges/compute... The current requirements are somewhat funny: > Why it is not permissible to accept a paid, copyrighted computer game or program from a friend unless the game or program is considered freeware or shareware. Explain the concepts of freeware and shareware.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- Bloating 4y ago
  Many of the requirements for current MBs have focus on ip protection
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
dws 4y ago
My copy is dated 1969. The COMPUTER merit badge card I have framed is dated July 27, 1970. Guess I missed the 50 year anniversary. An Assistant Scoutmaster worked with the computer at the local Bell Telephone office, and guided me through getting the badge, mostly by providing binders of training material for their GE-mark-something. Computers then were expensive and precious, so the Bell folk only let civilians look through a window into the room with the magic box. And computer time being costly, they only let me run one program--which printed HI MOM and added two numbers. I didn't even get to type it in. In those days, one filled out a coding form and handed it to the secretarial pool to get cards punched. "c. Describe jobs in the computer field." Well, we all fly our jet packs to the office...
dflock 4y ago
That's such a great historical artefact! Page 33 describes the workings of magnetic core memory, complete with some fantastic diagrams.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

61 points by dalke 4y ago

Following up on yesterday's "Master's at Arms" badge (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31344293 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=31344293 ), I thought people might be interested in what the requirements were for the "Computers" badge for the Boy Scouts of America, nearly 50 years ago. Here are the requirements, from https://archive.org/details/BoyScoutsComputers/page/n5/mode/2up https://archive.org/details/BoyScoutsComputers/page/n5/mode/... : 1. Do the following: a. Give a short history of computers. Describe the major parts of a computer system. Give four different uses of computers. b. Describe the differences between analog and digital computers. Tell the use of each. c. Explain some differences between special- and general-purpose machines. 2. Do the following: a. Tell what a program is and how it is developed. b. Explain the difference between an assembler and a compiler. Tell where each might he used. Describe a source and an object program. c. Use a flowchart diagram to show the steps needed to set up a camp. 3. Do one of the following: a. Prepare flowcharts to find out the average attendance and dues paid at the last five troop meetings. b. Prepare flowcharts to work out a simple arithmetic problem. Explain to your counselor how this program could be stored in a computer. Tell how it could be used again. 4. Do the following: a. Name four input/ output devices for computers. Explain the use of two of them in a system. b. Explain the Hollerith code. Show how your name and address would be punched on a card. 5. Tell the meaning of six of the following: a. memory b. bits c. on-line d. bytes e. microsecond f. address g. channel h. interrupt i. register j. console k. central processing unit 6. Tell the meaning and use of 12 of the following: a. business data processing b. information retrieval c. simulation d. scientific processing e. floating point f. truncation g. fixed point h. accuracy i. input j. record k. output l. file m. software n. instruction o. hardware p. indexing q. loop r. subroutine s. real time t. time sharing u. cybernetics 7. Visit a computer installation. Study how it works. 8. Do the following: a. Explain what each of the following does: design engineer, analyst, customer engineer, operator, programmer, salesman b. Read two pieces of information about computers. Describe what you read. c. Describe jobs in the computer field.

dylan604 4y ago
I think this would give one a much more rounded knowledge base than your typical coding boot camp graduate receives.
- Shared404 4y ago
  Old Scouting manuals are a gold mine for basics on a very wide variety of knowledge. Much of it is outdated, but I still quite enjoy reading through a replica copy of the original BSA handbook.
- ryandrake 4y ago
  > Explain the difference between an assembler and a compiler. Tell where each might he used. Describe a source and an object program. > Name four input/ output devices for computers. Explain the use of two of them in a system. > Tell the meaning of six of the following: a. memory b. bits c. on-line d. bytes e. microsecond f. address g. channel h. interrupt i. register j. console k. central processing unit > Tell the meaning and use of 12 of the following: a. business data processing b. information retrieval c. simulation d. scientific processing e. floating point f. truncation g. fixed point h. accuracy i. input j. record k. output l. file m. software n. instruction o. hardware p. indexing q. loop r. subroutine s. real time t. time sharing u. cybernetics I think I've interviewed senior software engineer candidates who would not do well with the above tasks.
  - dmurray 4y ago
    > I think I've interviewed senior software engineer candidates who would not do well with the above tasks. You exaggerate. I'll give it a try: Memory is what you need to pass a software engineering interview at a top company. Address is unimportant these days, as everything is on-line - employees can work wherever they like so long as it's in the Bay Area. Channel is how you market your SAAS software. Console is what you do to your colleagues after a round of layoffs. Interrupt is what your manager does.
dahart 4y ago
The definition for “on-line” sure changed a lot, that’s the only term in #5 that doesn’t mean the same thing anymore. I got my merit badge in the late 80s after visiting Evans & Sutherland with the troop. They made flight simulators for the government, among other things. At the time, it seemed like the coolest place ever to work, and I’m sure had a major impact on my deciding to study & work in computer graphics. They were still using huge “hard drive” platters like the one the guy is holding in the picture on page 37.

cowmix 4y ago

I was in a computers themed "Explorer Scout" program in the mid-80s (it had some affiliation to the BSA but I'm not sure how) when I was going to high school. One of the benefits of that program was getting your own account on Honeywell's Multics timeshare system.

mayoff 4y ago
I was in an Explorer Post that met at Convex Computer Corporation in Dallas, TX in 1986. It was my first exposure to Unix and C programming. A few of us got dial-up access to a Convex C-1 “minisupercomputer”. Then I got in trouble for dialing in just to play Hack. (This was before it became Nethack.)
- WalterGR 4y ago
  Did Hack really use enough resources for it to be an issue? Or did you get in trouble for using your access to have fun?
  - mayoff 4y ago
    I was dialing in to a system used by dozens of Convex employees to do their jobs. One (or more?) of them ran `ps` and didn't like seeing `hack` in the output during business hours. I don't know if it was really a resource consumption issue.
NordSteve 4y ago
Me too! That's how I got my start in tech. I now help run FIRST Robotics Competition events as my way of paying it forward.

version_five 4y ago

I was in cub scouts (this was in Canada, it's for ages 7-10 or so, I don't know how it maps to BSA scouts, it's part of the same Baden Powell originated organization). I did a similar badge in this org which I think was a little more basic, in the 80s. I haven't really thought about it since then, but we had to do some definitions, I think write instructions for some task as in this one, and what strikes me most now is we had some (simple) boolean logic exercises, or had to make examples, I think explained as switches, explaining AND, OR (I dont remember if others were there) as series and parallel and determining whether a light was on. Sounds basic, but having taught intro to programming and intro to circuits many years later, still confusing for many

Alupis 4y ago
Cub Scouts is the under-12 youth organization that "feeds" into Boy Scouts. Many, but not all, Boy Scouts started off as Cub Scouts, rising up through the ranks to earn their Webelos before "graduating" into Boy Scouts around age 12. Cub Scouts organize into "Packs" (analogous to a Troop in Boy Scouts), and break off into "Dens" (analogous to Patrols in Boy Scouts). Scouting is an amazing youth experience, both in Cub Scouts and Boy Scouts. Unfortunately not all Packs and Troops are created equal, although some "specialize" in certain activities (such as canoeing/kayaking, backpacking, etc). Finding a good Pack or Troop that fits your interests is key.
- WalterBright 4y ago
  I joined the Boy Scouts at 10 mainly because the Cub Scouts abandoned Wolf Bear Lion Scout as WeBeLoS.
  - Alupis 4y ago
    That's a real shame. In my day, earning your Webelos was quite a life achievement and meant a great deal, for being so young. It was not quite the same magnitude of importance as earning your Eagle, or being inducted into the Order of the Arrow, but it was significant.

willswire 4y ago

As an Eagle Scout, one of the things I’m most grateful for is the merit badge program. You really get a wide exposure to tons of different areas - most of which come with a pamphlet similar to this one. The real value proposition of the BSA is to better serve your community and those around you by becoming well-rounded, and having contextual experience of teamwork dynamics.

nemo44x 4y ago
Yeah it’s amazing. So far ahead of it’s time too. I hope they survive.
- obviouslynotme 4y ago
  As long as you live in the right area and select a good troop, the BSA is still thriving. The real key is to participate in the troop with your son so you can monitor it and help it become better.
  - nemo44x 4y ago
    I agree, you can’t just hope it’s to your standard. I have a young boy too small for scouts still but I plan on taking a leadership role when he’s older. If it’s any good still!
  - _delirium 4y ago
    > select a good troop Also one that fits your preferences, since style and personality varies a lot. I didn't really realize as a kid that you had a choice of which one to join, and just joined the one that met at my school. I only realized when I moved to a new city that there was such a big difference in personality. The two I was in were both pretty friendly and good in a general sense, but totally different in style. One was very "official" and put a lot of emphasis on the various ceremonies, oaths, ranks, uniforms, etc., while the other mostly de-emphasized that and was primarily oriented around monthly camping trips. (In affluent areas there is also a style of troop I'd personally avoid that isn't quite "bad" in the sense of the really dysfunctional ones, but not super great for personal development: the one where everyone is there primarily because they want their kid to put Eagle Scout on their Ivy League college applications...)

WalterBright 4y ago

It's in my 1969 BSA merit badge book, too. I don't know why I never got it, though my first access to a computer was in 1975. At one point I decided to get every merit badge, but lost interest before finishing. In the early 1970s, the BSA underwent a major dumbing down, which contributed to my losing interest. For example, the WeBeLoS rank in Cub Scouts stood for "Wolf Bear Lion Scout". To a boy, that was pretty cool! But by the time I achieved Bear, they changed it to mean "We Will Be Loyal Scouts". Ugh. That just let all the air out of the balloon. What boy wants that rank? The uniforms were changed from cotton that worked great outdoors, to cheap, itchy polyester. Perhaps coincidentally, the scouts stopped wearing the uniforms. They revamped the Boy Scout manual, too, in a miserable way. I kept my old one. I had the 1969 Merit badge book because, you guessed it, they messed up the merit badges, too, to be more like Sesame Street. It just wasn't for me anymore. Grumble, grumble.

bg4 4y ago
I'm an Eagle Scout who grew up in the 80s. 'We'll be loyal scouts' was my jam baby.
- WalterBright 4y ago
  I'm sure there were still plenty of boys for whom it worked. The BSA that I liked, however, had passed into history, much like how chemistry sets were emasculated at about the same time.
  - WalterBright 4y ago
    One think I thank the BSA for is when I moved to Arizona, I thought it was one ugly lifeless brown desert. One of the merit badges required me to identify many types of flora and fauna to a leader while hiking in the desert. It really opened my eyes to the beauty of the Arizona desert, which I grew to love very much. The swimming and lifesaving merit badges also made me confident in the water, which I thank the BSA for giving me the impetus to do. And, of course, the knots have served me well, and I can make fire with one match. I wish the Scouts had taught a lot more woodcraft. They didn't even teach building an emergency shelter.

ben_w 4y ago

I find it surprising and fascinating that OCR was already a thing by this point. What is/was easy and what is/was hard isn’t at all obvious, not even in retrospect.

convolvatron 4y ago
it was pretty marginally useful for the longest time, night and day with todays

NegativeLatency 4y ago

https://www.boyscouttrail.com/boy-scouts/meritbadges/computers-merit-badge.asp https://www.boyscouttrail.com/boy-scouts/meritbadges/compute... The current requirements are somewhat funny: > Why it is not permissible to accept a paid, copyrighted computer game or program from a friend unless the game or program is considered freeware or shareware. Explain the concepts of freeware and shareware.

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
Bloating 4y ago
Many of the requirements for current MBs have focus on ip protection

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

dws 4y ago

My copy is dated 1969. The COMPUTER merit badge card I have framed is dated July 27, 1970. Guess I missed the 50 year anniversary. An Assistant Scoutmaster worked with the computer at the local Bell Telephone office, and guided me through getting the badge, mostly by providing binders of training material for their GE-mark-something. Computers then were expensive and precious, so the Bell folk only let civilians look through a window into the room with the magic box. And computer time being costly, they only let me run one program--which printed HI MOM and added two numbers. I didn't even get to type it in. In those days, one filled out a coding form and handed it to the secretarial pool to get cards punched. "c. Describe jobs in the computer field." Well, we all fly our jet packs to the office...

dflock 4y ago

That's such a great historical artefact! Page 33 describes the workings of magnetic core memory, complete with some fantastic diagrams.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]