One of the additions is a permanent exhibit called "Revolution: The First 2000 Years of Computing." Alex Bochannek is a curator at the museum. He says the new exhibit tells the story of more than one thousand historical objects. He says one of the more popular items is a portable computer from nineteen eighty-one.

ALEX BOCHANNEK: “We think of portable computers today as laptops. But the Osborne One was about the size of a sewing machine and weighed twenty-four pounds. So, just being able to pick one of those up will help our visitors understand how difficult portability was about thirty years ago.”

FAITH LAPIDUS: Visitors to the Computer History Museum can also see parts of one of the earliest large-scale electronic computing devices. The ENIAC or Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer was designed during World War Two.

There are also pieces from the guidance computer that was used during the American space agency’s Apollo missions.

Mr. Bochannek says the "Revolution" exhibit is about more than the history of modern computing. He says it tells a much larger story about how these developments have affected society and culture, especially in recent years.

The Computer History Museum plans to launch an online version of the exhibit on its website next month.

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BOB DOUGHTY: Who would have thought that millions of people would buy a product containing living insects? A creative businessman named Milton Levine did, and he thought correctly. He and his brother-in-law, E. J. Cossman, created the Uncle Milton Ant Farm more than a half century ago. Today, grandchildren of the first ant colony owners are watching ants working hard on the farm.