First Computer Bug

September 9, 1947 - It was on this day that engineers at Harvard found and removed the first real computer bug from a Mark II Aiken Calculator. It was a moth that had wedged itself into the machine's relays, which caused the calculator to malfunction.

The engineers were familiar with the term "bug" for any flaw or error in a system that resulted in it not being able to operate properly. They also saw the humor in the discovery of an actual insect that was mucking things up.

In recognition of the find, the moth was taped to the day's log sheet and that's where it remains today - on display in the Smithsonian National Museum of American History.