Blaise Pascal was a French mathematician, inventor, writer, physicist and catholic philosopher. Blaise worked in the area of mathematical probability and studied the connections between mathematics and nature. He designed and studied the arithmetic triangle shown below. This asthmatic triangle helped develop theories of probability that are used today. As well as his work in probability he invented the mechanical calculator as well as 50 other prototypes of calculating machines which proved to contribute to the development of computer as we know today by expanding and researching the view of machines doing mathematical calculations. Blaise died in 1662 at the age of 39 and to honor his scientific contributions he had a programming language, and measurement of pressure and a law (the "important principle of hydrostatics") named after him.  an example of an arithmetical triangle |  Blaise Pascal  A Pascaline (an early design of a calculator) |
