ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Arithmometer

An arithmometer is a special machine that helps people add, subtract, multiply, and divide numbers. It's kind of like a calculator, but it was made a very long time ago before calculators existed.

The arithmometer has lots of little keys that you can press, and each key represents a different number. When you press the keys in the right order, the arithmometer can help you do really complicated math problems without making mistakes!

It's a bit like a magic box that can help you with numbers. It can solve problems quickly so you don't have to do them by hand.

Even though the arithmometer is not used very often anymore, it was very important in the past for people who needed to do a lot of math, like scientists and engineers.