During the Space Race of the mid-twentieth century, NASA relied on a group of female mathematicians known as 'human computers' to calculate complex flight trajectories. Among them was Katherine Johnson, whose exceptional mathematical skills were critical to the success of early crewed space missions. In 1962, as John Glenn prepared for the Friendship 7 mission, he famously requested that Johnson personally verify the orbital calculations programmed into NASA's new electronic computers. The electronic computers were mainframe IBM 7090 models, which occupied an entire room and used vacuum tubes before being upgraded to transistors. Although these electronic machines were incredibly fast, Glenn was skeptical of their reliability and trusted Johnson’s calculations more. Johnson’s work on this mission not only proved the capability of human computers but also helped transition NASA into the digital age.
The writer is considering deleting the underlined sentence from the paragraph. Should the sentence be kept or deleted?
- AKept, because it provides essential technical context that explains why Glenn was skeptical of the reliability of the electronic computers.
- BKept, because it supports the paragraph's main theme by showing how advanced NASA's technology was compared to human computers.
- Deleted, because it interrupts the paragraph's focus on Glenn's reliance on Johnson's calculations by introducing irrelevant technical details about the computers.Cevap
- DDeleted, because it contradicts the assertion made later in the paragraph that Glenn trusted Johnson's calculations more than the electronic machines.