John von Neumann and the Origins of Modern Computing

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John von Neumann is one of the major scientific figures of 20th century America. He contributed to the mathematical disciplines of logic, measurement theory, Lie groups, operator theory, mathematical physics, and numerical analysis. He applied mathematics to the foundations of quantum mechanics, game theory, economics, and automata. He pioneered the early design, programming, construction, and scientific use of computers. He served as a productive faculty member at eminent mathematical research institutions in Germany and the United States. He participated at high levels in the mobilization of science during World War II and was a major advocate for the development of atomic energy after the war. In short, von Neumann played a central role in mathematical science in all of its ramifications in the United States. A study of his work promises greatly to elucidate the growth of the United States as a scientific power in this century. Nowhere was his influence greater than in his contributions to the development of the modern computer. It is this latter aspect of von Neumann's work that Dr. Aspray is studying. Specifically, Dr. Aspray is examining von Neumann's work on the logical design of hardware systems, coding and programming, and the construction of modern computing equipment. This work will complement Dr. Aspray's previous work on von Neumann's contributions to numerical analysis, scientific computation, and theory of computing. Under this new project, Dr. Aspray will integrate the work of the two projects and set the general context in which von Neumann's work was carried out. This work is based on an examination of published materials, archival materials, new and existing oral histories and conversations and correspondence with von Neumann's associates.