Charles Babbage InstituteNewsletter - Stanford University

! \AjAI The Charles Babbage Institute

For the History ofInformation ProcessingSponsored by AFIPS and theinformationprocessing community

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iSuite 284', 701 Welch RoadPalo Alto, California 94304Telephone(415) 328-0984

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The Charles Babbage Institute NewsletterVolume 2, Number 2 June 30, 1980

After a long and thorough search, the University ofMinnesota has been chosen by CBl's Board of Trusteesas the Charles Babbage Institute's permanent home. Aformal contract must still be developed and approved bythe Board of Regents of the University of Minnesotaand by the Board of Trustees of the Charles BabbageInstitute.

In making their selection, the Board of Trusteesnoted that the University of Minnesota offers to CBIthe facilities to implement a vigorous program inthe history of information processing. The universityhas strong programs in the history of science andtechnology, in management information systems, andin computer science and engineering. The university'slibrary ranks among the top dozen academic librariesin the U.S.; it also administers a major program inarchives and manuscripts. In addition, a new MidwestRegional Institute for Computer Science and Tech-nology is being launched in cooperation with localindustry. The strength of the computer industry inMinnesota was one of the factors which led to theselection of the University of Minnesota as CBl's hostinstitution.

The university will provide CBI with centrally-located space on the first floor of the Walter Libraryand archival space in one of the university's archivescollection areas. Ready access to the university for the

many

scholars and others who will use CBl's resources

is provided by the Minneapolis/St. Paul airport, whichis thirty minutes away.

As a part of the arrangementwith the university,Roger H. Stuewer, Professor of History of Science andTechnology at the University of Minnesota, will serveas Acting Director until a permanent director isappointed (see story on page 3 for more informationabout Roger Stuewer).

A University of Minnesota/CBI consultative com-mittee will be established to maintain close liaisonbetween CBI and the university's departmental andcollegiate units. A permanent director will be soughtthrough a search conducted by a committee jointlyappointed by the CBI Board of Trustees and anadministrative committee of the University ofMinnesota, chaired by the Dean of the Institute ofTechnology. The Director will report jointly to theCBI Board and to this administrative committee.

CBl's Site Selection process began in the springof 1979 with the appointment of a Site SelectionCommittee under the chairmanship of Walter F. Bauer,President, Informatics, Inc. The Committee sent lettersto the presidents of forty-one major universities havingprograms in computer science and technology acrossthe country asking for indications of interest. Abouthalf of these responded positively, and several otheracademic institutions, having read about CBl's sitesearch in the CBI Newsletter and other publications,asked to be considered as well. The Committeedeveloped a twenty-six page "Proposal Invitation"which was sent to all interested organizations. Thirteenuniversities submitted proposals and, of these, theUniversity of Michigan and the University of Minnesotawere chosen as "finalists." A team of members of theSite Selection Committee visited these universities inmid-April and the Site Selection Committee choseMinnesota by written ballot soon thereafter. The Boardof Trustees endorsed the selection and final approvalwas granted in May.

CBI was most gratified by the high level of interestin the Institute indicated by the many fine proposalsthat were received. Selection of the finalists and thefinal selection itself was most difficult. CBI thanksboth the University of Minnesota and the University of

Continued on page 2

2

CBI SELECTS PERMANENT HOMEContinued from page 1

Michigan for their outstanding proposals and for theirhospitality during the on-site visits.

Members of CBl's final Site Selection Committeewere: Walter F. Bauer, (Chairman), Informatics, Inc.;Paul W. Berthiaume, New York Times InformationBank; James W. Birkenstock, IBM (retired); WalterCarlson, IBM; Albert S. Hoagland, AFIPS; Robert P.Multhauf, Smithsonian Institution; E. R. Piore, IBM(retired); Joan N. Warnow, Center for History ofPhysics; and Spencer Weart, Center for History ofPhysics.

FROM THE EDITORIn any new field, scholars often find themselves

working in isolation. Increasingly, the Charles BabbageInstitute is finding that we are able to help researchersin our developing field find each other to discussmutual interests. Our new Newsletter department,"Invisible College," is geared toward continuing thiseffort of introducing those interested in differentaspects of the history of computing to each other.

Pamela GullardEditor

STROMBACK BECOMES TRUSTEEDußay E. Stromback, President of Burroughs

Corporation, has been elected to the Board of Trusteesof CBI. Stromback joined Burroughs in 1949 inPhiladelphia as a design engineer. He subsequentlyheld a progression of engineering, plant management,and executive positions, becoming President, chiefoperating officer, and a member of the Board ofDirectors in October 1979. He joins twenty-one otherCBI Board members, listed on the last page of theNewsletter.

The next meeting of the Board of Trustees isscheduled for October 31, 1980 at the University ofMinnesota in Minneapolis.

MICROFILM PROJECT BEGINSBrian Randell, Professor of Computing Science at

the University of Newcastle Upon Tyne, has agreed tochair a small committee for a CBI project in whichclassic and out-of-print books and other materialsrelating to the history of information processing willbe made available on microfilm. Brian Randell iseditor of The Origins of Digital Computers: SelectedPapers (Springer Verlag, 1973) and of the extensivebibliography on the history of computing whichappeared in the Annals of the History of Computing(Vol. 1, No. 2, October 1979). The committee is still information. Other members will include Paul Armer;Henry S. Tropp, Professor of Mathematics at HumboltState University; and one or two other experts, such asa European scholar and a specialist in library/micro-film sciences. This committee will decide on theselection criteria for the collection and make the actualselection. It has been proposed that the project's firstrelease should be a basic and fundamental historical

library, with subsequent releases of collections of morelimited interest. It is expected that the collection willprove of value to most major universities, governmentand private research libraries, and other research andscholarly institutions of all kinds.

Randell has stated that CBl's Microfilm Committeeis most interested in obtaining comments and advice onthis project from anyone interested in it. We would liketo hear suggestions about both the technology andmanagementof the collection, and about the contentsof the collection itself. Please write to: Professor BrianRandell, Computing Laboratory, The University ofNewcastle Upon Tyne, Claremont Tower, ClaremontRoad, Newcastle Upon Tyne, ENGLAND NEI 7RU. Itwill speed communications among the committee if acopy of your letter is also sent to our Palo Alto address.

PUBLIC INTERESTAs part of CBl's awareness building effort, feature

articles on the Institute have appeared, or will appear,in the Annals of the History of Computing, theNewsletter of the American Institute of Physics' Centerfor History of Physics, ISIS (the journal of the Historyof Science Society), Datamation, Data Communications,and the Peninsula Times Tribune (which is publishedin Palo Alto, California). Brief items have appeared ina number of newsletters and in the trade press.

ANNALS OF THE HISTORYOF COMPUTINGThe Table of Contents for the April 1980 issue of theAnnals of the History of Computing is:

John Mauchly, 1907-1980—Nancy SternJohn Curtiss, 1909-1977—John ToddNational Bureau of Standards SWAC—HarryD. HuskeySHARE—A Eulogy to Cooperative Effort— PaulArmerProgramming the Manchester Mark I—MartinCampbell-KellyPrinted Papers of Charles Babbage—Alfred W. VanSinderen

Included with this Newsletter is a copy of a brochuredescribing the Annals and giving information onsubscribing. Readers are reminded that Associates ofthe Charles Babbage Institute receive at no charge asubscription to the Annals. If you would like to joinour Associates, the schedule for contributions is asfollows:

Cost ofLifetimeAssociate Minimum Annual Membership at theMember Tax-Deductible Category LevelCategory Contribution (one time payment)

Regular $40 $ 650Participating f 100 $1,000Sustaining $ 500 $3,000Patron $1,000 $5,000

Please make your check payable to the Charles BabbageInstitute and mail to:

CBI,

701 Welch Road, Suite 224,Palo Alto, CA 94304.

3

ROGER H. STUEWER, CBI'SACTING DIRECTOR

Roger H.

Stuewer,

CBl's newly appointed ActingDirector, is Professor of the History of Science andTechnology at the University of Minnesota, where heholds a joint appointment in the School of Physics andAstronomy and the Minnesota Center for Philosophy ofScience and teaches courses in the history of nineteenthand twentieth century physics. He is also on thegraduate faculty of the American Studies Program.Professor Stuewer received his Ph.D. degree in 1968from the University of Wisconsin with a major inphysics and the history of science. Since 1967 he hasbeen on the Minnesota faculty, except for 1971-72when he was Associate Professor of the History ofScience at Boston University. During 1974-75, as aFellow of the American Council on Learned Societies,Dr. Stuewer was on leave at Harvard University asHonoraryResearch Associate in the Department of theHistory of Science. He was Secretary of the History ofScience Society (1972-77) and is currently editor of theAmerican Association of Physics Teachers ResourceLetters and Reprint Books and chairman of the A.I. P.Committee on the History of Physics. He is the authorof The Compton Effect: Turning Point in Physics(Science History Publications, 1975) and editor of twoother books, Historical and Philosophical Perspectivesof Science (University of Minnesota Press, 1970) andNuclear Physics in Retrospect (University of MinnesotaPress, 1979).

ORAL HISTORIESFrom 1967-73, the American Federation of Informa-

tion Processing Societies (AFIPS) and the SmithsonianInstitution conducted a joint project in the history ofcomputing wherein more than 200 oral interviews withvarious key individuals in the field were generated.(The Smithsonian has since interviewed a number ofother individuals.) CBl's oral history project is nowproviding a substantial supplement to that initialhistorical base.

As mentioned in previous Newsletters, CBI hasinterviewed Gerhard Dirks, who holds a number ofearly computer patents, and six individuals involvedwith the late George Forsythe in establishing theComputer Science Department at Stanford. CBI hasalso interviewed Antonin

Svoboda,

a Czechoslovakianwho built what was probably the first "fault tolerant"digital computer. (See Obituary, page 6).

Bobbi Mapstone, who did many of the oral historyinterviews carried out under the AFlPS3Smithsonianproject, interviewed R. Blair Smith this May. Smithwas the founder of the Digital Computer Association,which begat SHARE, the first computer user group. Hewas also responsible for SABRE, the pioneering airlinereservation system developed jointly by IBM andAmerican Airlines. SABRE was the first large commer-

cial on-line system. This summer, Nancy Stern,Associate Professor of Administrative Computer Sys-tems at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York,will interview Arthur Burks, Professor of Computerand Communication Sciences at the University ofMichigan. Burks is best known for having been one ofthree authors of the classic 1946 paper, "PreliminaryDiscussion of the Logical Design of an ElectronicComputing Instrument," along with Herman H.Goldstine and John

yon

Neumann. Despite theimportance of the role he has played in the history ofour field, Burks has not previously been interviewed.This summer Stern will also interview James W.Birkenstock, retired Vice President of IBM. Birkenstockwas intimately associated with IBM's entry into theelectronic data processing business.

Shortly after the recent death of John Mauchly,Nancy Stern interviewed his colleague, J. PresperEckert; Kay Mauchly, his widow, who was aprogrammer in the days of ENIAC; William Cleaver, apatent attorney for Sperry Univac; and James McNultyson-in-law of Mauchly and employee of Sperry Univac.Subsequently, Stern interviewed George Eltgroth, whowas the patent attorney for Eckert and Mauchly.

Nancy Stern's Ph.D. thesis, "From ENIAC toUNIVAC: A Case Study in the History of Technology"will be published next year by Digital Press. She hasoffered to turn over to CBI, subject to the concurrenceof the individuals, tapes of the interviews she madewhile doing research for her dissertation. These tapescover about 40 hours and include discussions withJohn Mauchly, J. Presper Eckert, Herman Goldstine,John G. Brainerd, Isaac Auerbach, Edmund C. BerkeleyS. Reid Warren, Irven Travis, Carl C. Chambers,Phillip Vincent, Mina Rees, and Morris Hanson.

EXECUTIVE CHANGESTwo of CBl's Board of Trustees members have made

major career changes in their management positions.Effective April 16, 1980, Erwin Tomash, CBl's founderand Chairman of its Board of Trustees, retired fromactive day-to-dayparticipation in the affairs ofDataproducts, the company which he founded in 1962and which has become the world's largest independentmanufacturer of printers. Tomash was Chairman ofDataproducts' Board of Directors. He will remain adirector, continue as chairman of the executivecommittee, and will serve as a consultant to thecompany. His retirement will permit him to devotemore time to his personal affairs and, in particular, tothe Charles Babbage Institute.

This spring, Clarence W. Spangle became Chairmanof the Board and Chief Executive of Memorex, theCalifornia-based 12,000employee manufacturer ofmagnetic tape, computer storage devices, and othercomputer-related equipment. Spangle was president ofHoneywellInformation Systems.

4

Charles Babbage'sAnalytical Engine

CHARLES BABBAGEThe Charles Babbage Institute for the History of

Information Processing was named for an Englishmanwhom many have called the "father" of the computer.Although Babbage died without ever successfullybuilding either the "difference machine" or the"analytical engine" he had designed, his far-reachingefforts have been recognized as presaging the moderncomputer.

Charles Babbage is often portrayed as an irascibleeccentric, but many believe that further research willreveal a deeper, more complex and likable individual.Anthony Hyman, who is working on a biography ofBabbage(to be published by Oxford University Press)says, "At an early date it became clear to me that thecommon pictures both of the man and his work werehopelessly inadequate and seriously misleading." Untilsuch time as a comprehensive, scholarly biographyappears, Babbage's personality will probably bedescribed in terms such as those used below in anarticle reprinted with permission from The IllustratedScience and Invention Encyclopedia, (London: MarshallCavendish, 1976).

Babbage, Charles (1791-1871 ). Charles Babbage wasborn at Totnes, Devon * the son of a wealthy banker.After a succession of private tutors, he entered TrinityCollege, Cambridge, in 1810. At this time, mathe-matical instruction consisted mainly of the study ofNewton's works, neglecting the more recent investiga-tions of Euler, Lacroix, and other European mathe-maticians. To encourage reform, Babbage and hiscontemporaries founded an Analytical Society.

In 1816, Babbage, John Herschel, and otherstranslated Lacroix's treatise on the calculus (animportant way of solving many mathematical prob-lems), followed in 1820 by a joint work, Examples inthe Differential and Integral Calculus. It was whileworking on these projects that Babbage wondered ifmachinery could be used to do some of the calculation.

Babbage married in 1814, and thereafter lived inLondon, but his married life was tragic. He was tooengrossed in his work to be a good father, and of hiseight children only three survived. Futhermore, his wifedied in childbirth in 1827.

In 1822, Babbage made a model of a CalculatingMachine that could add six-figure numbers. Encouragedby this success, he designed a far more elaborate

machine or "difference machine" for the calculation oftables, which would automatically set printing type toeliminate the chance of human error, and in 1823 theGovernment advanced £1500 towards the cost ofmaking the engine. He hoped that such a machinewould prevent errors occurring in mathematical andastronomical tables.

The work, however, went very slowly. By 1827, whenit should have been finished, there was little to show,and rumours that he had put the money to his ownuse caused a nervous breakdown. More money wasadvanced, but in 1834 his skilled foreman resigned,and the machine was left unfinished.

Between 1835 and 1848 he worked on a newcalculator, the "analytical engine," paying for itentirely from his own fortune. This too, remainedunfinished at his death. In all, he had spent £20,000, aconsiderable amount in those days, on these projects.

Among his more lasting inventions were theheliograph, a signalling device using mirrors in

sunlight, and the opthalmoscope,** a deviceforexamining the interior of the eye. He was also anexpert in ciphers. In 1832 he published Economy ofManufacturers, a widely circulated book dealing withthe organization of labour, ln 1827 he was appointedLucasian Professor of Mathematics at Cambridge, butdid not give a single lecture during his ten-year term.

An over-sensitive and tactless person, Babbage wasunpopular with many of his contemporaries; theAstronomer Royal, Sir George Airy, called his firstmachine a "humbug." Babbage replied by writing abook attacking prominent Fellows of the Royal Society.He was born far ahead of his time, and only in an ageof digital computers can his understanding of theproblems of automatic calculation be appreciated.

WHERE WAS CHARLES BABBAGE BORN?—A FOOTNOTE

Perhaps the point is not very earthshaking, but as wewere selecting the article for the Newsletter to describeCharles Babbage's life, we noticed that although TheIllustrated Science and Invention Encyclopedia (seestory above) states that Charles Babbage was born in1791 in Totnes, Devon, Anthony Hyman, a well-knownBabbage scholar, says that "Charles Babbage was bornon 26 December 1791 in his father's house in CrosbyRow on the Walworth Road, about 500 yards from theElephant and

Castle,

now in the Borough ofSouthward in London." 1 Checking further, we foundthat the city of Totnes in Devonshire does indeed claimto be the birthplace of Charles Babbage, and HermanGoldstine confirms the view that Babbage was born inDevonshire.2 Showing how the confusion started,Goldstine directs his readers to the biography byMaboth Moseley3 wherein she points out that Babbagehimself claimed that his birth was in London, in 1792.Moseley says that Babbage was wrong—that he was

*See story on this page about Charles Babbage's birth.""Although Babbage did build an opthalmoscope, Herman YonHelmholz actually invented it.

5

born in Totnes, Devonshire, in 1791.Where was Babbage born? When? Whoever has any

opinions, or proof, please come forward so that in thefuture we of the CBI Newsletter will not feel compelledto write such long footnotes on the matter.

■Anthony Hyman, Computing, A Dictionary oj Terms, Concepts andIdeas (Arrow Books: London, 1976).2 Herman H. Goldstine, The Computer from Pascal to yon Neumann(Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1972).3Maboth Moseley, Irascible Genius, A Life oj Charles Babbage,Inventor (London: Hutchinson k Co., 1964).

CBI'S ARCHIVAL COLLECTIONWhen CBI becomes established in its permanent

home at the University of Minnesota, about fiftyboxes of historical material will be transferred fromthe office in Palo Alto to become the nucleus of theInstitute's archival collection. As mentioned in earlierNewsletters, a low-key archival program has been inoperation since the Institute was founded. Until thepermanent home was known, CBI was not ready topursue an aggressive policy of acquisition, but ratheraccepted only contributions which might otherwisehave been lost through delay. Some of thesecontributions were noted in the January issue of theNewsletter. Since then CBI has received a great manymore items, including a valuable gift from OliverWhitby of SRI International of draft documents andworking notes on the development of ERMA, whichwas the first automated check-processing system, andincidentally, as Dr. Whitby points out, the firsttimesharing system. Other unique or scarce docu-ments have been contributed by libraries in the areaand by scientists at SRI, including Ralph Keirstead,Carrol Kerns, Leonard Leving, Robert Hoppin, andCecilia Smith.

When the historical research center is established atMinnesota, a comprehensive database for the use ofscholars working in the field will be established. Themain intent is not to attempt to centralize thephysical location of all important documents, butrather to centralize (and then distribute) informationabout where things are. However, CBI will continueto collect those materials for which no other homecan be found. CBI is well aware that even materialsthat are now plentiful should be preserved. It is veryclear already that certain landmark documents oncecommon are now scarce because their preservationwas not provided for in the past.

A system for recording and making the currentcollection useful has been under active developmentand implementation. The archival consultant, ReddyDively, has set up procedures for these functions, andprocessed the items received. Records of the contentswill be included with the collection when it moves toMinnesota. The records include: lists of each donor'sgifts, the periodicals holdings file, and a catalog ofcards describing each item. From the card file it ispossible to learn not only whether the Institute

possesses a particular document, but also the name ofthe donor, the size, color, and type of binding, andwhether the item is a personal memo, technicalreport, product brochure, manual, or other class ofinformation. These descriptiveelements, as well asdates and report numbers, have been coded for futurecomputer processing.

In addition, Nancy Stern, Associate Professor,Department of Administrative Computer Systems,Hofstra University, New York, and Paul Berthiaume, aCBI Trustee and President of the New York TimesInformation Bank, are working on an historicaldatabase prototype for CBI. This prototype will beconstructed from a sample base of 200 documents. Thedocuments selected will be abstracted and the abstractsretrievable on a free text basis. One of CBl's goals isthe application of the tools of information processingto historical materials. This project brings state of theart technology to creating a resource that will helpencourage history of computing scholarship.

DIGITAL PRESS ANNOUNCESNEW SERIES

Digital Press has announced a new series ofpublications, the History of Computing Series, whichwill focus on pioneering developments in computing.These publications will present a global overview ofthe evolution of the computer industry, carefullyexamining historic American as well as landmarkinternational efforts. Written by distinguished histo-rians and computer professionals, the publications willexamine the political, economic, and technologicalaspects of those vital contributions which make up thehistory of computing. The first two publications, EarlyBritish Computers and Project Whirlwind are describedin the "Publications" Department of this Newsletter.

SPEAKER'S BUREAUIn the September, 1979 CBI Newsletter, we included

an article requesting readers to send in descriptions oftalks they would be willing to give on subjectsconcerning the history of computing. We received anumber of interesting replies, such as one fromProfessor Dr. B. Baron V. Freytag Loringhoff ofTubingen, Germany, concerning his lecture on "thecalculating machine of Wilhelm Schickard—Tubingen1623." We do not have room here to include thename of everyone who wrote in, but we would like tothank you all. The speaker's bureau is going to be avaluable resource.

This project is being developed in conjunction withJoe Ann Clifton of the American Federation ofInformation Processing Societies (AFIPS). If you wouldlike to receive more information about the speaker'sbureau, or add your lecture to the list, you may write toher directly: Joe Ann Clifton, Litton Industries, Inc.,Technical Libraries, 5500 Canoga Avenue, WoodlandHills, CA 91365, (213) 887-2678. We would appreciate itif you would also send a copy of your letter to CBl'sPalo Alto address.

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Antonin Svoboda

ANTONIN SVOBODA DIESWe sadly announce that Antonin Svoboda, computer

pioneer, died of a massive heart attack in Milwaukee,Oregon. He was 72. In late November, 1979, CBIconducted a six-hour oral history interview withSvoboda and that interview should prove invaluable toscholars studying the life and work of this brilliantengineer.

Born and raised in Czechoslovakia, in 1937 Svobodaand a colleague designed an antiaircraft gun controlsystem. Hitler crossed the border of Czechoslovakia on15 March 1939and the Czech Ministry of NationalDefense sent Svoboda abroad, anywhere, to work theantiaircraft system against Hitler. Svoboda and hisfamily narrowly escaped, finallymaking their way toFrance.

Soon,

as Hitler advanced on that country also,Svoboda fled again, this time to the United Stateswhere he became a staff member of the RadiationLaboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Tech-nology. There, his work included co-invention of theresidue number system for computers.

In 1946, Svoboda returned to Czechoslovakia on anintended visit and was forced by the Communistregime to stay. He subsequently joined the Academyof Science and invented the computer SAPO(Samocinny Pocitac-automatic computer). The mate-rials which Svoboda was able to obtain in Czecho-slovakia for his work, such as vacuum tubes, were sounreliable that he was compelled to build into hissystem a high degree of redundancy and manycorrecting features, thereby producing the world's firstfault-tolerant computer.

In 1964, Svoboda and his family again managed toescape from Czechoslovakia. He returned to the UnitedStates and spent most of the balance of his career atUCLA.

BABBAGE LETTER PURCHASEDAlfred W. Van

Sinderen,

President of The SouthernNew England TelephoneCompany and aprime collectorof Charles Babbage materials (See September issue ofthe CBI Newsletter, page 6), has purchased a twenty-three page letter sent by Babbage on August 8, 1854 toAlexander Dallas Bache, Superintendentof the U.S. CoastSurvey.

Reached by telephone, Van Sinderen explained thesignificance of the letter and the circumstances of its

writing. Alexander Dallas Bache was a great-grandsonof Benjamin Franklin. His grandfathers were RichardBache, the second Postmaster General of the U.S.(succeeding Franklin) and Alexander Dallas, Secretaryof the Treasury under James Madison. Bache himselfwas a man of many talents. One-time President ofGirard College, he founded and was first President ofthe National Academy of Sciences. Part of hisresponsibility in 1854 was to administer the LighthouseBoard, of which he was a member. One of CharlesBabbage's many inventions (besides the AnalyticalEngine, sometimes called the "first" computer) was asystem for occulting lighthouses, that is, identifyinglighthouses by characteristic flashes. In 1852, Babbagewrote to the U.S. Lighthouse Board describing thissystem and that body recommended the idea to the U.S.Senate. In 1853, the Senate passed a bill granting $5,000to implement Babbage's lighthouse system in theUnited States. Bache subsequently wrote to Babbageasking him to come to the U.S.A. and take charge ofthe project. In declining this offer, Babbage wrote atconsiderable length, telling the story of his life, anddescribing his extensive work on Calculating Engines.

This letter provides insight into Babbage's view ofhimself and his work and is an important document tostudents of this computing pioneer. Van Sinderen isplanning to write a paper about the letter and itshistorical significance.

CBI FELLOWSHIPOnly three proposals were received for CBl's 1980-81

Fellowship. These are now being evaluated by theFellowship Selection Committee, headed by MelvinKranzberg of the Georgia Institute of Technology, amember of CBl's Board of Trustees. The fellowship isbeing offered on a continuing basis. We wouldappreciate it if our readers would call the program tothe attention of promising students and encouragethem to apply.

RESEARCH PRIORITIESAs reported in the last Newsletter, Nancy Stern,

Associate Professor, Department of AdministrativeComputer Systems, Hofstra University, New York,began conducting for CBI a program under which shewould identify those historical areas most in need ofstudy and in particular, would develop priorities forselecting those pioneers who should be interviewed forthe oral history program. She has concentrated on thelatter half of this assignment, developing lists ofindividuals who worked with John W. Mauchly and J.Presper Eckert, Jr. and those involved in the earlyactivities at Harvard University, the Moore School ofElectrical Engineering at the University of Pennsyl-vania, the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton,the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, EngineeringResearch Associates, the Bureau of the Census, theNational Bureau of Standards, the Office of NavalResearch, the Naval Ordnance Labs, IBM, and BellLabs.

7

PUBLICATIONSHere is a list of interesting relevant publications that

have come to our attention.By the way, if, after reading in this Newsletter of

Herman Lukoff's book, From Dits to Bits, you tried toorder a copy from Robotics Press in Portland, Oregon,you were probably frustrated by the fact that neitherthe post office nor the telephone company seemed toknow about the Press. Copies of the book can beobtained from Robotics Press, P.O. Box 92, Forest

Grove,

OR 97116. The price of Lukoff's book is $12.95plus $1.00 for shipping and mailing.

Selim G. Aki, "Professor Jevons and His LogicalMachine" (Queen's University, Department ofComputing and Information

Science,

Kingston,Ontario, Canada, 1980). This paper accords W.S.Jevons his proper place in the history of theevolution of computing science.

J. Baxandall (1926), revised and updated byJane Pugh, Calculating Machines and Instruments(Science Museum, London SW7 2DD, England).This contains a catalogue of the collections in theScience Museum.

Martin Campbell-Kelly, The Computer Age(Wayland Publishers Limited, 49 LansdownePlace, East Sussez BN3 IHF, England, 1978). Theauthor surveys the development of calculatingdevices from the abacus to the modern computerand discusses prospects for the future. 120 pages,many pictures, £4.50

Philip Charles Enros, "The Analytical Society:Mathematics at Cambridge University in the EarlyNineteenth Century" (Universityof Toronto,Ph.D. Dissertation, 1979). This dissertation is anexploration, based largely on manuscript sources,into the cultural context of developments inmathematics in early nineteenth century England.

A. P. Ershov, The British Lectures (Heyden andSon, Inc., 247 South 41st

Street,

Philadelphia, PA19104, 1980). In the western world, Ershov is thebest known of Russian software experts. Afrequent visitor to the west, in October 1976 helectured in the U.K. The texts of his lecturesappear in this volume in slightly expanded form.One lecture was devoted to "An Outline of theHistory of Computing in the USSR" and anotherto "The First Soviet Compilers." 80 pages, softcover,

$14.00.

Douglas R. Hofstadter, Godel, Escher, Bach(Basic Books, 10 E. 53rd

Street,

New York, NY,1978). This unique book involves, among otherthings, an imaginative and playful discussion ofthe work of Godel and Turing. There have beengood reviews in Scientific American and NewYork Review of Books and the book has beenawarded the Pulitzer Prize.

Doris Langley Moore, Ada, Countess of Love-lace (John Murray, 50 Albemarle Street, LondonWIX 4BD, England, 1977). This excellent biog-raphy of "the first programmer" is based on a vast

mass of documents, few of which have beenpublished previously.

S. H. Lavington, Early British Computers(Digital Press, DEC Educational Services, CrosbyDrive, Bedford, MA 01730, 1980). This bookcenters on the pioneering work on moderncomputers that took place in the United Kingdombetween 1935 and 1955. It closely examines theeconomic, political, as well as technologicalaspectsof landmark projects of the time.Concurrent American developments are compared,highlighting the worldwide interplay of ideas. 140pages and over 60 photographs, $8.00.

Kent C. Redmond and Thomas M. Smith,Project Whirlwind, A Case History in Contem-porary Technology (Digital Press, DEC Educa-tional Services, Crosby Drive, Bedford, MA 01730,1980). Whirlwind—the first high speed electronic-digital computer able to operate in "real time"—contributed much to today's computer technology.This book sheds new light on this criticaljuncture in the development of digital computers.300 pages, 60 photographs and diagrams, $18.00.

Thomas M. Thompson, "From Error Correct-ing Codes Through Sphere Packings lo SimpleGroups" (Department of Mathematics, Universityof California, Davis—this Ph.D. thesis is availablefrom University

Microfilms,

300 N. Zeeb Road,Ann Arbor, MI 48106, tele. 800-521-0600, 1979).This dissertation follows ". . . the devious trail thatwinds its way through a quarter century ofmathematics" into today's computing environ-ment. This thesis is an excellent example ofeffective use of oral history. The Annals of theHistory of Computing is looking for a reviewer ofthe manuscript.

An Age of Innovation: The World of Electronics1930-2000. (This is aclothbound edition of the 50thAnniversary edition of Electronics, which was theApril 17, 1980 issue. Order from ElectronicsReprints, P.O. Box 669, Hightstown, NJ 08520,tele. 609-448-1700x5494). Written by the staff ofElectronics, this contains ten chapters on thehistory of the past fifty years and five chapterslooking ahead to the year 2000. Computers aregiven a great deal of attention. ISBN 0-07-606688--b., 288 pages, $18.50. Discounts are given for 1 1copies or more. A limited number of issues of themagazine are also available for $9.00.

lEEE Transactions on Education—The EditorialAdvisory Board of the lEEE Transactions onEducation has planned a special issue for August1980 on the subject of the history of electricalengineering. For orders, write to lEEE Transac-tions on Education, 445 Hoes Lane, Piscataway,NJ 08854. Papers will deal with topics such asbiographies of engineers, history of organizations,impact of household appliances, and electricalmanufacturing.

8

INVISIBLE COLLEGE DEPARTMENTIn an influential footnote in Science Since Babylon (Yale University Press, 1975) Derek de Solla Price referred to

the "new invisible college"—a set of individuals working in a specializedfield ofknowledge who, despite variedgeographical locations, slowly get to know one another, communicating with one another where previously therehad been little or no communication, interchanging ideas and information about their field, and sometimesbeginning cooperative efforts. As a clearinghouse, in the past two years the Charles Babbage Institute has catalyzedthe growth of the invisible college of individuals interested in the history of computing.

To continue the task of helping individuals find others with common interests, the CBI Newsletter is introducingthe following "Invisible College" Department, ln this section, we will describe the work of individuals working in

the field, of relevant organizations, meetings, fellowships, or any other activities in the field that we think our

readers might be interested in. Whenever possible, we will include addresses and telephone numbers so that you candirectly contact any of the sources.

In the history of science and technology, support isavailable from the National Science Foundation forresearch into the growth of the engineering andmathematical sciences; the developmentof scientificorganizations, social institutions, and intellectual andother movements significant for understanding thegrowth of science and technology; various factorsresponsible for the development of science andtechnology; relationships between scientific andtechnological developments, particularly in the recentera; and other subjects associated with the growth ofscience and technology. If interested in applying fora grant, you should prepare a proposal according toinstructions in NSF's Grants for Scientific Researchbooklet and submit it to: Dr. Ronald J. Overmann,Associate Program Director, History and Philosophy ofScience, Division of Social Sciences, National ScienceFoundation, Washington, D.C. 20550.

t^-it^i

Harvey L. Garner, Professor of Computing andInformation Science at the University of Pennsylvania,has recently resigned as AFIPS's History of ComputingCommittee chairman. Daniel McCracken, President ofthe Association for Computing (ACM), a majorconstituent society of AFIPS, has been appointed totake his place.

L&>L&t

In Great Britain, The Contemporary ScientificArchives Centre in Oxford collects, sorts, and cata-logues scientific collections and then places thesecollections at an appropriate university or museum. Ofthe 60 catalogues published so far, four of these havebeen major figures in computing: Alan Turing, StanleyGill, Christopher Strachey, and Douglas R. Hartree.The Centre was established under the joint aegis of theRoyal Commission on Historical Manuscripts and theCouncil of the Royal Society. Its director is MargaretGowing and its address is: Contemporary ScientificArchives

Centre,

10 Keble Road, Oxford OKI 3QG,England.

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The Board of Directors of the Institute of Electricaland Electronics Engineers (lEEE) approved the estab-lishment of a new Center for the History of ElectricalEngineering (CHEE) at its meeting in August 1979. Dr.Robert Friedel, formerly a professor of History ofTechnology at Clarkson College in New York, hasbeen selected as the Director. He will assume his dutiesnext August. The Center will be located in theEngineering Societies Building in New York City andthe Director will be a member of the lEEE head-quarters staff. The lEEE headquarters is located at 345East 47

Street,

N.Y., N.Y. 10017.The Center activities are expected to include

gathering information and compiling inventories ofdocuments, photographs, and artifacts in the possessionof individuals, companies, and educational andgovernmental institutions. The Center also willmaintain and catalog lEEE archival records andconduct or direct oral interviews. A newsletter isplanned to disseminate information on Center activities.Support for specific research projects in electricalhistory will be sought once needed projects have beenidentified. It is anticipated that the Director will play aprominent role in the planning of symposia and other,activities related to the celebration of the Centennial ofthe lEEE (AIEE) during 1984. A major goal of CHEEwill be to provide informed interpretations of electricalengineering history to an international constituency oflEEE members and to the public.

t^^t^i

Cassette tapes (both video and audio) of a conferencedevoted to the History of Programming Languages(HOPL) are now available from ACM. This conferencewas sponsored by the Association for ComputingMachinery's Special Interest Group on ProgrammingLanguages (ACM/SIGPLAN) and was held June 1-3,1978. A brochure about the tapes is enclosed with thisissue of the Newsletter.

L^*L^*

9

Two studies involving the military and computershave come to our attention. The first of these is beingconducted by James Hewes Jr. of the Department of theArmy, The Center of Military History, Washington,D.C. 20314. His research involves an analysis of thehistory of the Army Ordnance Department's manage-ment of the development and construction of ENIAC atthe Moore School of Electrical Engineering at theUniversity of Pennsylvania. It is based largely on theMoore School's ENIAC archives and interviews withJohn G. Brainerd, who was the ENIAC ProjectDirector; Herman H. Goldstine, who acted as liaisonbetween the Moore School and the Ordnance Depart-ment, and Colonel Paul N. Gillon (U.S.A. ret.) whowas responsible for the overall supervision of theproject and for its funding.

The other study is being undertaken by Fred Shaw atthe Strategic Air Command's Office of History, OffutAir Force Base, NB 68113. This study concerns SACcomputers and contains chapters describing the appli-cation of data processing to management support,intelligence, and operations.

The U.S. military played a critical role in thedevelopment of computers. If any Newsletterreadersknow of any other studies concerning this role, pleaselet us know and we will describe the projects in futureissues.

<^*K^>

Monte D. Wright, Director, History Office, NASA,Washington D.C. 20546, is interested in knowing ofanyone interested in the interaction of computertechnology and the space program. He would also liketo know of anyone studying the development ofcomputers built as recently as in the late 1960s—computers in general, not just space-related ones.NASA funds a major book or two on the history ofspaceactivities each year, contracting with individualsand universities or other nonprofit, educationalorganizations. Inquiries are invited by Dr. Wright.

L&IL&-,

Augusta Ada Byron, Countess of Lovelace (1815--1852) is known as the first computer programmer forher pioneering work on how Charles Babbage'smachine might be used (see story on Charles Babbage,page 4). She described procedures necessary to solveproblems using the mechanical forerunner of today'scomputers. Now, a new computer language has beennamed in her honor.

The new language, ADA, was developed throughcooperation between Honeywell's Systems and ResearchCenter in Minneapolis and Cii Honeywell Bull inParis. It will be used by the U.S. Department ofDefense as a common standard for future applicationsof computers embedded in Linked States militarysystems.

For more information on Lady Lovelace herself, seeDoris Langley Moore's full-length biography, Ada,Countess of Lovelace (New York: Harper, 1977).

l^vi*

INVISIBLE

COLLEGE,

continuedMore and more data processing corporations are

becoming awareof the value of preserving their ownhistories and of chronicling the development of theirfield. Many of these companies are instituting in-househistorical programs. The historical activities of Inter-national Computers Limited (ICL) in Britain provide agood example of what a company can do to retaindocumentation and artifacts of its past and therebycontribute to an understanding of the growth of thedata processing industry as a whole.

ICL has appointed a consultant to consider whatarchives material should be retained, to establish wheresuch material is located at present and to recommendmethods for chronicling it, and to consider what oraland written records should be obtained from formerdirectors and senior executives of ICL and itspredecessor companies. In addition, the corporation hasalready carefully preserved the statutory books of thepredecessor companies, mc hiding records that dateback to 1907.

Through the years, ICL has also donated specimenproducts to various public museums and maintained arecord of what is on display. It is currently consideringa museum of its own. In 1979, ICL began publishing atechnical journal which should prove to be of archivalinterest in years to come.

<**&^*&*t

The Center for History of Physics is a division of theAmerican Institute of Physics, the membership corpora-tion of leading American societies in the fields ofphysics and astronomy. The AIP Center aids thepreservation and use of original source material so thatfuture generations—and our own as well—can betterunderstand the growth and impact of physics andastronomy in our time. The Center maintains the NielsBohr Library, which contains an extensive collection ofpublished works and other materials relating to thehistory of modern physics and astronomy. The Centeralso aids scientists, their families, and institutions inarranging for preserving historical source materials andcarries out historical studies, notably an extensive oralhistory program to tape record the recollections ofeminent physicists and astronomers. The Centerpublishes the results of its preservation and researchactivities, and communicates information to the publicby providingresources and services to writers,educators, film makers, and others.

CBI has been in contact with the AIP Center sincethe Institute's inception and has used the Center as arole model in developing its own programs. SpencerWeart, Director, and Joan N. Warnow, AssociateDirector, have been of tremendous help to CBI, givingfreely their advice and assistance, including beingmembers of our Site Selection Committee.

The AIP Center publishes a Newsletter free ofcharge. Their address is 335 East 45th

Street,

NewYork, NY 10017.

vs>*«s>->

10

William Aspray, Jr., CBI Fellow, gave a paper atthe Annual Meeting of the History of Science Societyheld in New York in December, 1979. This paper,"The Growth of a Mathematical Theory of ThinkingMachines," discusses the early developmentsof thosesubdisciplines of computer science known as automatatheory and artificial intelligence. Aspray's thesis is thatthese fields developed not so much from examining thepossibilities suggested by existing physical machines,but from attempts to consider how a machine could"think"—"that is, the idea of a thinking machinepreceded the construction of actual machines, includingelectronic digital computers."

Aspray has also drafted a paper on Turing and thebeginnings of computer science and has given a talk tothe Wisconsin History of Science Departmental Collo-quium on "Mechanism and Automata: Man's Attemptat Self-Simulation Since Descartes." He expects to havea draft of his thesis, "Logical Origins of ComputerScience: The Search for Mathematical Constructibility,"completed late this spring.

Aspray has accepted a position in the mathematicsdepartment at Williams College in Williamstown,Massachusetts.

Aspray, and Paul Ceruzzi, our second CBI Fellow,were both on the program of the annual meeting of theMidwest Junto of the History of Science Society at theUniversity of Wisconsin in Madison in April. Asprayspoke on "The Conceptual Revolution in InformationProcessing" and Ceruzzi lectured on "The Study of theEarly History of the Computer and Computation."

t^>L&*

The

Charles

Babbage Institutefor Ihe History

of

liioruiation ProicssingBOARD OF TRUSTEES

Information Bank

OFFICERSErwin

Tomash,

Chairman of theBoard and PresidentAdelle

Tomash,

Secretaryand TreasurerPaul

Armer,

Vice Presidentand Executive Secretary

President,

AFIPS

Gene

M.

Amdahl, ChairmanEmeritus,

Amdahl CorporationIsaac 1..

Auerbach, President,

Auerbach

Publishers,

Inc.William

O. Baker,

Chairman.Bell Telephone LaboratoriesWalter F.

Bauer, President,Informatics,

Inc.Paul W.

Berth-iaume, President,

New York Times

James W.

Birkenstock,

VicePresident, IBM (Retired)Arnold A.

Cohen, Dean,

University ol Minnesota(Retiied)I. Bernard

Cohen, Professor,

1 larvard University

William A Cruikshank

Partner,

Cruikshank and AntinWillis K.

Drake, Chairman,

Data Card CorporationHarvey L.

Garner, Professor,

University

of

PennsylvaniaAlbert

S.

Hoagland,

Arthur 1.. C. Humphreys,Director, InternaIionalComputers LimitedMelvin Kianzberg,

Professor,

Georgia Institute

of

Technology

Joshua Lederberg,

President,Rockefeller

University

Robert E.

McDonald,

Vice Chairman, SperryRand CorporationRobert P.

Multhauf,

Senior

Historian,

SmithsonianInstitutionWilliam C.

Norris, Chairman,

Control Data CorporationKenneth H.

Olsen, Chairman,

Digital Equipment CorporationClarence W. Spangle, Chair-man, Memorex CorporationDußay

E, Stromback, President,

Bui toughs CorporationErwin

Tomash, Chairman,

Dataproducts Corporation(Retired)

FOUNDERSGene M. AmdahlIsaac L. Auerbach

INVISIBLE COLLEGE, continued

The Research Collections Program of the NationalEndowment for the Humanities has assumed responsi-bility for all finding aids (bibliographies, indexes,guides, etc.) projects and has a new name. Theprogram, administered by Margaret Child, is nowcalled the Research Resources Program and revisedguidelines reflecting its newresponsibilities are avail-able. For more information, write Research ResourcesProgram, National Endowment for the Humanities,NFAH Mail Stop 350, Washington, DC 10506.

L&V^i

Allan G. Bromley, of the Computer ScienceDepartment at the University of Sydney in New SouthWales, Australia, has written a 25,000 word "paper" ona group of Charles Babbage's notations written duringearly 1838 and dealing with the design of the analyticalengine. Bromley conducted his research at the ScienceMuseum in London, studying the notations inassociation with Babbage's drawings and notebooks.Bromley says that he soon "formed the impression thatthe notations were key to understanding the designs ofthe analytical engine ..." The paper will be ready forpublication soon.

t^"^>

The Charles Babbage Institute for the History of Information ProcessingNewsletter is an occasional publication of the Charles Babbage Institute

for

theHistory of Information Processing, Suite 224, 701 Welch

Road,

Palo Alto,California

94304,

telephone (415) 328-0984. The Newsletter reports on Instituteactivities and on other developments in the history of information processing.Permission to

copy

without fee all or part ol this material is granted providedthat a

copy of

the publication containing the copied material is sent to dieInstitute.©The

Charles

Babbage Institute

for

the History

of

Information Processing

Walter F. BauerFrank

Ci. Chambris

Willis K. DrakeChester I. LappenDonald LucasDan

McGurk

Flank G. MullaneyKenneth

Olsen

Max PalevskyRyal PoppaErwin 'Tomash

CORPORATE SPONSORS

AFIPS

Bell Telephone LaboratoriesBurroughs CorporationControl Data CorporationData Card CorporationDataproducts

Cot

potationHoneywell CorporationIBM CorporationInternational ComputersLimitedInformatics, Inc.

NCR

CorporationSperry Rand CorporationArhtur Young and

Co.