By the turn of the 19th century, there was a shift in the meaning of calculation. The talented mathematicians and other intellectuals who produced creative and abstract ideas were regarded separately from those who were able to perform tedious and repetitive computations. Before the 19th century, calculation was regarded as a task for the academics, while afterwards, calculations were associated with unskilled laborers. This was accompanied by a shift in gender roles as well, as women, who were usually underrepresented in mathematics at the time, were hired to perform extensive computations for the tables as well as other computational government projects until the end of World War II. This shift in the interpretation of calculation was largely due to de Prony's calculation project during the French Revolution. This project was able to unite people from many different walks of life as well as mathematical abilities (in the traditional sense) and hence changed the meaning of calculation from intelligence into unskilled labor. Mechanizing calculation Prony was able to have artisans (workers who excelled in mechanical arts that require intelligence) work along with mathematicians to perform the calculations. Prony noted a few interesting observations about this new dynamic. First, it was fascinating to see so many different people work on the same problem. Second, he realized that even the ones with the least intellectual ability were able to perform these computations with astonishingly few errors. Prony saw this entire system as a collection of human computers working together as a whole - a machine governed by hierarchical principles of the division of labor. In fact, Prony may have begun to amend his notion of intelligence, which he began to use to evaluate the system as a whole, rather than evaluating the intelligence of its constituents. Influence on Charles Babbage Charles Babbage, credited with inventing the first mechanical computer, was inspired by de Prony's take on Smith's division of labor. He agreed with the three tiered system, but Babbage was seized by the idea that the labours of the unskilled computers could be taken over completely by machinery. This would keep only the two highest groups human, and also would transform the role of the planners into a maintenance group for the machine. Failure of the tables to be popularly implemented The French Revolutionary government passed the law that made the metric system the official measurement system in 1795, but they did not