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ENIAC; Electronic Numerical Integrator And Computer, was the first general-purpose, electronic computer. It was a Turing-complete, digital computer capable of being reprogrammed to solve a full range of computing problems.Built by John Mauchly and Presper EckertBuilt at the Moore School of Electrical Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania.Sponsored by the Army for calculating artillery firing tables during WWII.300 days of calculations in one day.

ENIACEDVACEckert and Mauchly knew the ENIAC was impractical!1944 proposed next computer, EDVAC.Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic ComputerImprovements over ENIACBinary, not decimalProgrammable!High-speed memorySerial, not random accessJohn von Neumannconsultant for ENIAC projectFirst Draft of a Report on the EDVAC (1945)an internal document (NOT!)memory stores instructions AND dataBuilt by U.Penn without Eckert & MauchlyNot finished until 1951

SAGESAGE (Semi-Automatic Ground Environment)Designed by Jay Forrester and George ValleyAutomated control system for tracking and intercepting enemy jet bomber aircraft from the 1950s into the 80s.Real time computing, data communication using modems.IBM wins contract to develop SAGEs AN/FSQ-7 computerLargest computer ever builtBomber threat became missile threat before SAGE was operational

Critical Issues

John Mauchlys idea of a computer occurred in 1941, when he saw John Atanasoffs experimental electronic adder (ABC). Based on Mauchlys personal experience, he was able improve upon Atanasoffs invention by using a binary number system.

Critical Issues continued At this point in in 1942, Mauchly had the theoretical idea of building a computer, but he did not stop there, he wrote a proposal for building this computer and submitted to the U.S. Army, which was approved with an R&D contract to build the ENIAC. (realized the appropriate market) This is often how major advances in science and technology occur; when different pieces of the puzzle (different disciplines and backgrounds) are put together.John Neumann: MathematicianJohn Mauchly: PhysicistPresper Eckert: Engineer

The ENIAC was not easily programmable John Mauchly now partnering with J. Presper Eckert teamed up with the mathematician John von Neumann to design EDVAC, which pioneered the stored program.

Mauchly and Eckert had created something that was truly amazing, but they knew even before the ENIAC was completely build that they had to improve on their invention and make it easier and faster to use or someone else at anytime could surpass them (Just as Mauchly did with Atanasoffs electronic adder).Critical Issues continued Mauchly and Eckert had not succeeded in commercializing their product because of its insufficient memory capacity for business computing tasks. It took a technical improvement by Jay Forrester who utlized ferrite-core memory (Deltamax) to make the computer appealing for a broader market (SAGE).Critical Issues continued

What Could Have Been Done Differently?If the individual scientists involved in the development of the computer did not interact with each other, then it would have taken much longer for the development of this technology. For example the US may have been significantly delayed with the Apollo space program, which utilized computer simulation and modeling to make space travel a possibility.

What Could Have Been Done Differently? ContinuedJohn Mauchly and Presper Eckert failed to adequately manage their company (Eckert-Mauchly Company), subsequently they failed to estimate accurate project costs. If Eckert and Mauchly had realized that they could not run a company on technical knowledge alone, they may have continued as a successful company and may very well have procured the contract that was eventually awarded to IBM.

What Could Have Been Done Differently? ContinuedIf John McPherson of IBM did not participate in the committee meeting of a professional society and did not have an opportunity to converse with Norm Taylor of MIT who advised McPherson of the MIT Digital Computer lab and its commercial concern, then IBM may not have eventually become the manufacturer of the Air Force Computer. The project could have very well been granted to Remington Rand or Raytheon. What Could Have Been Done Differently? Continued...Mauchly visited Atanasoff multiple times in Washington during 1943 and discussed computing theories, but did not mention that he was working on a computer project himself until early 1944. In September 1942 Atanasoff left Iowa State for a wartime assignment as in Washington, D.C.; no patent application for the ABC was subsequently filed by Iowa State College.If Atanasoff had spent the time to file a patent, rather then attend to his civil duty, it could have been really lucrative for him.Atanasoff was patrioticMauchly was sneaky

After a long court battle, it was ruled ; Eckert and Mauchly did not themselves first invent the automatic electronic digital computer, but instead derived that subject matter from one Dr.John Vincent Atanasoff. Judge LARSON October 19, 1973What if historical events where differentIf World War II did not occur. If Soviet Union did not explode the Atomic Bomb.

Lessons LearnedKnowledge transfer to utility Major advances in science and technology occur when different disciplines of science and engineering come together. Be carful who you share your work with.Being involved in organizations and committees related to ones field can be very beneficial resource.

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