• DocumentCode
    1066814
  • Title

    Biographies: Tom Kilburn: A Pioneer of Computer Design

  • Author

    Anderson, David P.

  • Author_Institution
    Univ. of Portsmouth, Portsmouth
  • Volume
    31
  • Issue
    2
  • fYear
    2009
  • Firstpage
    82
  • Lastpage
    86
  • Abstract
    Tom Kilburn was a figure of the first importance in the history of computer design, contributing to the development of five important computers over three decades. On casual acquaintance, Kilburn was a self- contained person who chose his words with care. Still, he possessed a somewhat dominating personality and was a natural team leader who inspired great loyalty and affection from those who worked closely with him. F.C. Williams summed up Kilburn in a simple sentence: "What you must always remember is that Tom is a Yorkshireman."
  • Keywords
    analogue computers; digital computers; Atlas; Manchester Baby; Manchester Mark I; Mark II computer; Meg; Muse project; cathode ray tube memory; computer design; digital electronic stored program computer; megacycle machine; Biographies; Computer Society; Computer aided manufacturing; Computer crashes; Computer science education; Councils; Educational institutions; Mathematics; Medals; Telecommunication computing;
  • fLanguage
    English
  • Journal_Title
    Annals of the History of Computing, IEEE
  • Publisher
    ieee
  • ISSN
    1058-6180
  • Type

    jour

  • DOI
    10.1109/MAHC.2009.32
  • Filename
    5070070