Instrumentation helps science and technology progress. Scientists and engineers around the world use instruments to observe, control, and understand the physical universe. Our quality of life depends on the future of instrumentation – from basic research in life sciences and medicine to design, test and manufacturing of electronics, to machine and process control in countless industries. The slide above shows the evolution of instrumentation over the last 100 or so years. It is important that instruments have always leveraged off widely-used technology. In the 19th century, the jeweled movement of the clock was first used to build analog meters. In the 1930s, the variable capacitor, the variable resistor, and the vacuum tube from radios were used to build the first electronic instruments. Display technology from the television has contributed to modern oscilloscopes and analyzers. And finally, modern personal computers contribute highperformance computation and display capabilities. In the past, data acquisition devices have been traditionally reserved for the standalone instrument. Also, advancements in the personal computer area have shifted data acquisition to the personal computer, which offers greater flexibility, ease of use, and cost-effective analysis.