“The object of my invention is to generally facilitate the compilation and increase the scope of… statistics.”

Columbia’s leadership in Data and Society is longstanding. Herman Hollerith 1879 School of Mines, 1890 PhD is one of the first recognized statistical engineers and founders of modern information processing. He invented punch cards for recording data as well as a tabulating machine and sorter to electronically process the results. Learn more.

The Alumni Center’s seventh-floor conference room is named after Hollerith.