A symposium and celebration was held at Aberdeen Proving Ground (APG), Maryland, in November 1996, to recognize and commemorate seminal Army contributions to the birth and development of modern computing. Primarily inspired by the 50th anniversary of the invention of the world's first general purpose electronic computer (the ENIAC), this two-day event also celebrated the dedication at APG of significant new computational resources provided by the Office of Secretary of Defense. On this occasion, scores of computing pioneers gathered at APG to reminisce about the accomplishments that stemmed from the Army's computation needs during World War II in particular, the need for the fi ring and bombing tables that were essential for accurate targeting of ground- and air-delivered ordnance.

As the Cold War began, America’s race for tech supremacy was taking off. Experts rushed to complete the top-secret computing research started during World War II, among them six gifted mathematicians: a patriotic Quaker, a Jewish bookworm, a Yugoslav genius, a native Gaelic speaker, a sophomore from the Bronx, and a farmer’s daughter from Missouri. Their mission? Programming the world’s first and only supercomputer—before any code or programming languages existed. These pioneers triumphed against sexist attitudes and huge technical challenges to invent computer programming, yet their monumental contribution has never been recognised—until now. Over a decade, Kathy Kleiman met with four of the original six ENIAC Programmers and recorded their stories. Here, with a light touch and a serious mind, she exposes the deliberate erasure of their achievements and restores the women to their rightful place as revolutionaries, bringing to life their camaraderie, their determination, and their rapidly changing world. As big tech struggles with gender inequality and momentum builds in restoring women to history, the time has come for this engrossing story to be uncovered and celebrated.

The history of the first programmable electronic computer, from its conception, construction, and use to its afterlife as a part of computing folklore. Conceived in 1943, completed in 1945, and decommissioned in 1955, ENIAC (the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer) was the first general-purpose programmable electronic computer. But ENIAC was more than just a milestone on the road to the modern computer. During its decade of operational life, ENIAC calculated sines and cosines and tested for statistical outliers, plotted the trajectories of bombs and shells, and ran the first numerical weather simulations. ENIAC in Action tells the whole story for the first time, from ENIAC's design, construction, testing, and use to its afterlife as part of computing folklore. It highlights the complex relationship of ENIAC and its designers to the revolutionary approaches to computer architecture and coding first documented by John von Neumann in 1945. Within this broad sweep, the authors emphasize the crucial but previously neglected years of 1947 to 1948, when ENIAC was reconfigured to run what the authors claim was the first modern computer program to be executed: a simulation of atomic fission for Los Alamos researchers. The authors view ENIAC from diverse perspectives—as a machine of war, as the “first computer,” as a material artifact constantly remade by its users, and as a subject of (contradictory) historical narratives. They integrate the history of the machine and its applications, describing the mathematicians, scientists, and engineers who proposed and designed ENIAC as well as the men—and particularly the women who—built, programmed, and operated it.

Software history has a deep impact on current software designers, computer scientists, and technologists. System constraints imposed in the past and the designs that responded to them are often unknown or poorly understood by students and practitioners, yet modern software systems often include “old” software and “historical” programming techniques. This work looks at software history through specific software areas to develop student-consumable practices, design principles, lessons learned, and trends useful in current and future software design. It also exposes key areas that are widely used in modern software, yet infrequently taught in computing programs. Written as a textbook, this book uses specific cases from the past and present to explore the impact of software trends and techniques. Building on concepts from the history of science and technology, software history examines such areas as fundamentals, operating systems, programming languages, programming environments, networking, and databases. These topics are covered from their earliest beginnings to their modern variants. There are focused case studies on UNIX, APL, SAGE, GNU Emacs, Autoflow, internet protocols, System R, and others. Extensive problems and suggested projects enable readers to deeply delve into the history of software in areas that interest them most.

Birthing the Computer: From Relays to Vacuum Tubes is the first in a multi-volume series on historical computing machines. This series will span the development of computer systems from the Zuse machines of the early 1930s to about 1995 when microprocessors began to be commoditized. Each volume will focus on a range of technologies, or a class of machines or a particular vendor, and will describe the hardware of the machines and its peripherals, the operating system and system software, and its influence upon programming languages. This volume begins with the Zuse machines which were constructed from relays, but contained the basic elements of a computer system, namely input, computing engine, and output. Early machines from Atanasoff and Berry, Aiken, Stibitz, and IBM are described. The transition from relays to vacuum tubes increased speed and performance significantly, and led to the first true computers in ENIAC, EDSAC, and EDVAC which used paper tape and Williams tubes for I/O and storage. These machines were built by universities. Several early machines were purpose built such as Colossus and BINAC, and created with government support and industrial know-how. By the mid-to-late ‘50s, computing machines were being built by universities (the SSEM, Whirlwind, and IAS machines), governments (the NBS SEAC and SWAC, and several other machines), and industry (the UNIVAC series and the English Electric DEUCE). Most of these machines were constructed using the von Neumann architecture, and represent an evolution of thinking in how computing machines were to operate along with some innovative ideas in software and programming languages. By the end of the 1950s, the design, development, programming and use of computing machines were in full ferment as many new ideas were proposed, many different machines were designed and some were constructed. Computing machines became a commercial enterprise. Governments receded from building machines to levying requirements and funding construction, while universities continued to explore new architectures, new operating systems, and new programming languages.

The quantum computer is no longer the stuff of science fiction. Pioneering physicists are on the brink of unlocking a new quantum universe which provides a better representation of reality than our everyday experiences and common sense ever could. The birth of quantum computers - which, like Schrödinger's famous "dead and alive" cat, rely on entities like electrons, photons, or atoms existing in two states at the same time - is set to turn the computing world on its head. In his fascinating study of this cutting-edge technology, and featuring a new introduction, John Gribbin explores the nature of quantum reality, arguing for a universe of many parallel worlds where "everything is real." Looking back to Alan Turing's work on the Enigma machine and the first electronic computer, Gribbin explains how quantum theory developed to make quantum computers work in practice as well as in principle. He takes us beyond the arena of theoretical physics to explore their practical applications - from machines which learn through "intuition" and trial and error to unhackable laptops and smartphones. And he investigates the potential for this extraordinary science to create a world where communication occurs faster than light and teleportation is possible. This is an exciting insider's look at the new frontier of computer science and its revolutionary implications.

Documents the innovations of a group of eccentric geniuses who developed computer code in the mid-20th century as part of mathematician Alan Turin's theoretical universal machine idea, exploring how their ideas led to such developments as digital television, modern genetics and the hydrogen bomb.

An electrifying biography of one of the most extraordinary scientists of the twentieth century and the world he made. The smartphones in our pockets and computers like brains. The vagaries of game theory and evolutionary biology. Nuclear weapons and self-replicating spacecrafts. All bear the fingerprints of one remarkable, yet largely overlooked, man: John von Neumann. Born in Budapest at the turn of the century, von Neumann is one of the most influential scientists to have ever lived. A child prodigy, he mastered calculus by the age of eight, and in high school made lasting contributions to mathematics. In Germany, where he helped lay the foundations of quantum mechanics, and later at Princeton, von Neumann’s colleagues believed he had the fastest brain on the planet—bar none. He was instrumental in the Manhattan Project and the design of the atom bomb; he helped formulate the bedrock of Cold War geopolitics and modern economic theory; he created the first ever programmable digital computer; he prophesized the potential of nanotechnology; and, from his deathbed, he expounded on the limits of brains and computers—and how they might be overcome. Taking us on an astonishing journey, Ananyo Bhattacharya explores how a combination of genius and unique historical circumstance allowed a single man to sweep through a stunningly diverse array of fields, sparking revolutions wherever he went. The Man from the Future is an insightful and thrilling intellectual biography of the visionary thinker who shaped our century.

Cloud Storage Security: A Practical Guide introduces and discusses the risks associated with cloud-based data storage from a security and privacy perspective. Gain an in-depth understanding of the risks and benefits of cloud storage illustrated using a Use-Case methodology. The authors also provide a checklist that enables the user, as well as the enterprise practitioner to evaluate what security and privacy issues need to be considered when using the cloud to store personal and sensitive information. - Describes the history and the evolving nature of cloud storage and security - Explores the threats to privacy and security when using free social media applications that use cloud storage - Covers legal issues and laws that govern privacy, compliance, and legal responsibility for enterprise users - Provides guidelines and a security checklist for selecting a cloud-storage service provider - Includes case studies and best practices for securing data in the cloud - Discusses the future of cloud computing