thewayne: (Default)
The Wayne ([personal profile] thewayne) wrote2024-05-27 11:50 am
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RIP: Another two computer pioneers, Gordon Bell and Robert Denard

Gordon Bell passed away. He was an early employee of Digital Equipment Corporation and a key creator of the PDP-1 mini-computer, which launched an amazing series of computers. He also was the "namesake of the ACM's prestigious Gordon Bell Prize, created to spur innovations in parallel processing"

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2024/05/gordon-bell-an-architect-of-our-digital-age-dies-at-age-89/

https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/24/05/21/2058226/gordon-bell-an-architect-of-our-digital-age-dies-at-age-89


Robert Denard was quite a clever bloke. He figured out how to pair a transistor with a capacitor to store a bit of rewriteable memory.

Prior to Denard's discovery, memory was stored in magnetic cores. It was a bulky and balky process that was pretty low density. What Denard did pioneered the development of the internet in our pockets.

https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/semiconductors/robert-dennard-father-of-dram-is-deceased-also-known-for-his-foundational-dennard-scaling-theory

https://news.slashdot.org/story/24/05/17/1812210/robert-dennard-inventor-of-dram-dies-at-91
kathmandu: Close-up of pussywillow catkins. (Default)

[personal profile] kathmandu 2024-05-28 12:48 am (UTC)(link)
My mother's first job after college was stringing core memory. She said all the components were so tiny, it was like "stringing invisible beads on invisible wires". One time she brought a spare bit of wire and core-bead home, to show a friend what she worked with, and the friend couldn't spot the materials in her hand until she moved the wire to move the bead.
silveradept: A kodama with a trombone. The trombone is playing music, even though it is held in a rest position (Default)

[personal profile] silveradept 2024-05-31 09:40 pm (UTC)(link)
Two very important people in making our machines a reality, and making them small enough to carry around with us.