Oral history interview with Arthur W. Burks and Alice R. Burks, 1980 June 20.

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Oral history interview with Arthur W. Burks and Alice R. Burks, 1980 June 20.

Burks describes his work on the ENIAC and Institute for Advanced Study (IAS) computers. He reviews his upbringing, education, and work experiences (mainly teaching) before joining the University of Pennsylvania Moore School of Electrical Engineering in 1941. He then discusses his associations with J. Presper Eckert, John Mauchly, John Brainerd, Herman Goldstine, and others and their work at the Moore School. Various aspects of the ENIAC project are discussed in detail: interactions of project members, division of tasks, decision making processes, patenting issues, initial operation, and von Neumann's association with the Moore School and the ENIAC and EDVAC projects.

Computer data (1 file : 208K)

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SNAC Resource ID: 7885490

University of Minnesota, Minneapolis

Related Entities

There are 9 Entities related to this resource.

Stern, Nancy B.

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6t72nh1 (person)

Mauchly, John W. (John William), 1907-1980

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6xg9wsh (person)

Computer science professor and co-designer of the ENIAC, EDVAC, and UNIVAC computers. From the description of Oral history interview with John W. Mauchly, 1976. (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis). WorldCat record id: 63288500 Computer science professor and co-designer of the UNIVAC. From the description of Sperry Univac Point of View speech, 1973 Nov. 13. (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis). WorldCat record id: 63276343 ...

Eckert, J. Presper (John Presper), 1919-1995

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w61j9grq (person)

Moore School of Electrical Engineering personnel in the 1940s. From the description of Oral history interview with J. Presper Eckert, Kathleen Mauchly, James McNulty, and William Cleaver, 1980 Jan. 23. (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis). WorldCat record id: 63297207 Co-designer of the ENIAC, EDVAC, BINAC, and UNIVAC computers. From the description of Oral history interview with J. Presper Eckert, 1975. (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis). WorldCat record i...

Burks, Arthur W. (Arthur Walter), 1915-2008

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6tb3fzs (person)

Professor of philosophy and of computer and communication sciences at the University of Michigan. From the description of Arthur W. Burks papers, 1930-1986 (bulk 1950-1984). (University of Michigan). WorldCat record id: 34420954 Computer scientist and computer historian, respectively. From the description of Oral history interview with Arthur W. Burks and Alice R. Burks, 1980 June 20. (University of Minnesota, Minneapolis). WorldCat record id: 63289537 C...

Goldstine, Herman H. (Herman Heine), 1913-2004

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6640f64 (person)

Herman Heine Goldstine was a professor of mathematics (University of Chicago, 1936-1939; University of Michigan, 1939-1950) and was involved in the early development of the computer during World War II and the 1950s. He continued to publish on the history of these subjects. He has held many administrative positions in scientific research with International Business Machines Corporation, namely, Director of Mathematical Sciences, Research (1958-1960); Director of Scientific Development, IBM Resea...

Brainerd, John G. (John Grist), 1904-1988

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6tf200h (person)

There are two epochs in the history of computing: before the completion of the Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer (known as the ENIAC), and after. While there are several controversies about the development of the ENIAC and its immediate successors, there is nearly universal agreement on three points: the ENIAC was the watershed project which convinced the world that electronic computing was not merely possible, but practicable; it was a masterpiece of electrical engineeri...

Moore School of Electrical Engineering

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6t76h79 (corporateBody)

The catalyst which advanced electrical engineering and the computer beyond the differential analyzer and to the ENIAC was the demands of the Army during the 1930s and particularly the Second World War. The practical need which the differential analyzer could not solve effectively was the preparation of firing tables and charts which showed how to aim artillery accurately. Too many people and too much time were required to prepare these tables. The federal government was willing to f...

Von Neumann, John, 1903-1957

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6v69kqh (person)

John (Johann) Louis von Neumann (1903-1957) was born in Budapest and showed early signs of being a child prodigy. He entered the University of Budapest in 1921, but also attended the University of Berlin and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology before obtaining a degree in chemical engineering in 1925. He earned his Doctorate in Mathematics from the University of Budapest in 1927. After graduation, he worked at the University of Berlin before becoming a visiting professor to Princeton from ...

Burks, Alice R., 1920-

http://n2t.net/ark:/99166/w6cc3971 (person)