Introducing the IT History Society Honor Roll
IT History Society May 18, 2010 The board of directors of the IT History Society is pleased to announce the latest addition to its website. The new entry is entitled the IT Honor Roll, a listing of living individuals that have made noteworthy contributions to the information technology industry. Please review the initial Honor Roll at http://ithistory.org/honor_roll/honor-roll.php. The seeded listing of about 100 individuals which can be sorted by alphabetical order or by two categories, a creator of history or a chronicler of history. We are asking you and your fellow professionals to submit nominations of honorees by using the online form at http://ithistory.org/honor_roll/fame-form.php. We do feel that that the list should exceed 100s of entries in a short period of time. If need be that you have several nominations and are short of time, you can email nominations to info@ithistory.org. The IT Honor Roll is intended to be a community effort of IT peers, historians, and archivist. It is not the intent of the IT History Society to create a list of honorees but only to collect them from the profession suggested nominees and host the results. The initial listing is a collection of honorees by some members in the interest in getting the list started. We do expect the list to rapidly grow by IT community nominations. Please take note that the IT Honor Roll is for living individuals. For individuals that have made a noteworthy contribution to the information technology industry and that have passed on please visit a section on the website entitled In Memoriam located at http://www.ithistory.org/memoriam/memoriam.php and to nominate entries please us the online form located at http://www.ithistory.org/memoriam/memoriam-form.php The current seeded list is sort of American centric and we would hope our fellow non US professionals will be able to nominate more honorees to the IT Honor Roll so the honor roll will be truly international. Once a suggested nominee is entered, the IT Honor Roll Committee, we appreciate their time in doing this, will review each entry. The committee consists of - Dr. Glenn Bugos - Moment LLC James Cortada - IBM Corporation Michael Geslowitz - IEEE History Center Dr. John Impagliazzo - Hofstra University Professor Martin Campbell-Kelly - Warwick University Jeffery Stein - Chairman, IT History Society Dr. Arthur Tatnall - Chairman, IFIP WG9.7 We look forward to your suggested nominees. The IT History Society is now on Twitter! <http://twitter.com/ithistoryorg> Best regards, Jeffery D. Stein Chairman (415) 435-7464 Tel (415) 435-6115 Fax http://www.ithistory.org IT History Society One Blackfield Drive Suite 331 Tiburon, CA 94920 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Email that means Business, Every email, Every day! - LetterClick BrandMail(TM) found only at www.letterclick.net
Hello, One of our students is studying the early use of electronic computers in neurophysiology, and has hit upon a 1967 controversy between Experimental/ Analogue and Digital approaches, when DEC LINCs were installed. What reading would you recommend on this topic ? (I remember James Small addressed this controversy in his dissertation, some 20 years ago - and so did, more recently, Paul Edwards in "The Closed World") Thanks ! Pierre Mounier-Kuhn CNRS & Université Paris-Sorbonne 28 rue Serpente, 75006 Paris
Hi Pierre, A welcomed addition to the history of the analog-digital relationship is that by Charles Care, who defended his dissertation at the University of Warwick in 2008. Care integrates this history into the history of modeling. You may also want to check relevant articles in Care's webpage at the University of Warwick. David Mindell's 'Between Human and Machine' is, in my opinion, a must for those who want to study this relationship. But it is focused on an earlier period than the one that your student is interested in and it is more focused on on-line computing (computing as integrated into control-regulation). The dissertation by James Small (part of which made it to articles in the 'Annals of the History of Computing' and 'History and Technology', one in each) is more relevant in regards to period. For a suggestive study on the social meaning of analog technology from a context other than computers, I would recommend the book 'Analog Days: the invention and impact of the moon synthesizer' (by Trevor Pinch and Frank Trocco, 2002). A wonderful but extremely demanding theoretically book on the analog-digital relationship from the early 1970s (1972) was written by Antony Wilden (System and Structure: Essays on Communication). I thought of it upon reading your email because it follows this relationship in contexts of some relevance to what we now call neurobiology. Because of your student's chronological focus, I would also suggest looking at the understudied history of hybrid analog-digital computer structures. For my own try at briefly introducing this history in the context of an encyclopedic entry, see Aristotle Tympas, ‘Computers: Hybrid’, in Encyclopedia of 20th –Century Technology, Colin Hempstead (editor), Routledge, London, Great Britain, 2005, 202-204. Also, for a survey of some preceding works on the history of analog computing, you may see the references in Aristotle Tympas, ‘Computers: Analog’, in Encyclopedia of 20th-Century Technology, Colin Hempstead (editor), Routledge, London, Great Britain, 2005, 195-199. I hope this helps, Telly
Hello,
One of our students is studying the early use of electronic computers in neurophysiology, and has hit upon a 1967 controversy between Experimental/ Analogue and Digital approaches, when DEC LINCs were installed. What reading would you recommend on this topic ? (I remember James Small addressed this controversy in his dissertation, some 20 years ago - and so did, more recently, Paul Edwards in "The Closed World")
Thanks ! Pierre Mounier-Kuhn
CNRS & Université Paris-Sorbonne 28 rue Serpente, 75006 Paris
_______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members@sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://sigcis.org/pipermail/members/ and you can change your subscription options at http://sigcis.org/mailman/listinfo/members
-- Αριστοτέλης Τύμπας / Aristotle Tympas http://www.phs.uoa.gr/hst/Faculty/Tympas.html
James Small's dissertation did finally get published as a book: The Analogue Alternative: The Electronic Analogue Computer in Britain and the USA, 1930–1975 (Routledge, 2001). It's a terrific book and the only thing of its kind about computers (stops in 1975, as the title mentions, though). Unfortunately it is insanely expensive - well over $100, and not many used copies floating around. A couple of chapters were published as stand-alones in the IEEE Annals of the History of Computing. Other resources: Mark Bowles, "U.S. Technological Enthusiasm and British Technological Skepticism in the Age of the Analog Brain" (IEEE Annals) Lang, "Analog was not a Computer Trademark! Why Would Anyone Write About Analog Computers In Year 2000?," Sound and Vibration (August 2000, attached to this email if the attachment survives the filter) Paul On May 19, 2010, at 4:46 AM, Aristotle Tympas wrote:
Hi Pierre,
A welcomed addition to the history of the analog-digital relationship is that by Charles Care, who defended his dissertation at the University of Warwick in 2008. Care integrates this history into the history of modeling. You may also want to check relevant articles in Care's webpage at the University of Warwick.
David Mindell's 'Between Human and Machine' is, in my opinion, a must for those who want to study this relationship. But it is focused on an earlier period than the one that your student is interested in and it is more focused on on-line computing (computing as integrated into control-regulation). The dissertation by James Small (part of which made it to articles in the 'Annals of the History of Computing' and 'History and Technology', one in each) is more relevant in regards to period. For a suggestive study on the social meaning of analog technology from a context other than computers, I would recommend the book 'Analog Days: the invention and impact of the moon synthesizer' (by Trevor Pinch and Frank Trocco, 2002).
A wonderful but extremely demanding theoretically book on the analog-digital relationship from the early 1970s (1972) was written by Antony Wilden (System and Structure: Essays on Communication). I thought of it upon reading your email because it follows this relationship in contexts of some relevance to what we now call neurobiology.
Because of your student's chronological focus, I would also suggest looking at the understudied history of hybrid analog-digital computer structures. For my own try at briefly introducing this history in the context of an encyclopedic entry, see Aristotle Tympas, ‘Computers: Hybrid’, in Encyclopedia of 20th –Century Technology, Colin Hempstead (editor), Routledge, London, Great Britain, 2005, 202-204. Also, for a survey of some preceding works on the history of analog computing, you may see the references in Aristotle Tympas, ‘Computers: Analog’, in Encyclopedia of 20th-Century Technology, Colin Hempstead (editor), Routledge, London, Great Britain, 2005, 195-199.
I hope this helps,
Telly
Hello,
One of our students is studying the early use of electronic computers in neurophysiology, and has hit upon a 1967 controversy between Experimental/ Analogue and Digital approaches, when DEC LINCs were installed. What reading would you recommend on this topic ? (I remember James Small addressed this controversy in his dissertation, some 20 years ago - and so did, more recently, Paul Edwards in "The Closed World")
Thanks ! Pierre Mounier-Kuhn
CNRS & Université Paris-Sorbonne 28 rue Serpente, 75006 Paris
_______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members@sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://sigcis.org/pipermail/members/ and you can change your subscription options at http://sigcis.org/mailman/listinfo/members
-- Αριστοτέλης Τύμπας / Aristotle Tympas http://www.phs.uoa.gr/hst/Faculty/Tympas.html
_______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members@sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://sigcis.org/pipermail/members/ and you can change your subscription options at http://sigcis.org/mailman/listinfo/members
————————————————— Paul N. Edwards, Assoc. Professor of Information A Vast Machine: Computer Models, Climate Data, and the Politics of Global Warming (MIT Press 2010) School of Information 3078 West Hall University of Michigan 1085 South University Ave. Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1107 (734) 764-2617 (office) (206) 337-1523 (fax) pne.people.si.umich.edu
Thanks a lot, Paul, Aristotle and Iannis ! That's very helpful. Yes, Lang's lively paper survived all filters. In return, a small picture of a 1950 Analogue Computer (SEA OME-P2), which was recently restored and listed among French Industrial Heritage items: http://www.aconit.org/histoire/a_sea_ome.php Best, Pierre. Mounier-Kuhn Le 19 mai 10 à 13:37, Paul Edwards a écrit :
James Small's dissertation did finally get published as a book:
The Analogue Alternative: The Electronic Analogue Computer in Britain and the USA, 1930–1975 (Routledge, 2001).
It's a terrific book and the only thing of its kind about computers (stops in 1975, as the title mentions, though). Unfortunately it is insanely expensive - well over $100, and not many used copies floating around.
A couple of chapters were published as stand-alones in the IEEE Annals of the History of Computing.
Other resources:
Mark Bowles, "U.S. Technological Enthusiasm and British Technological Skepticism in the Age of the Analog Brain" (IEEE Annals)
Lang, "Analog was not a Computer Trademark! Why Would Anyone Write About Analog Computers In Year 2000?," Sound and Vibration (August 2000, attached to this email if the attachment survives the filter)
Paul <Lang 2000 Analog Was Not A Computer Trademark.pdf>
On May 19, 2010, at 4:46 AM, Aristotle Tympas wrote:
Hi Pierre,
A welcomed addition to the history of the analog-digital relationship is that by Charles Care, who defended his dissertation at the University of Warwick in 2008. Care integrates this history into the history of modeling. You may also want to check relevant articles in Care's webpage at the University of Warwick.
David Mindell's 'Between Human and Machine' is, in my opinion, a must for those who want to study this relationship. But it is focused on an earlier period than the one that your student is interested in and it is more focused on on-line computing (computing as integrated into control-regulation). The dissertation by James Small (part of which made it to articles in the 'Annals of the History of Computing' and 'History and Technology', one in each) is more relevant in regards to period. For a suggestive study on the social meaning of analog technology from a context other than computers, I would recommend the book 'Analog Days: the invention and impact of the moon synthesizer' (by Trevor Pinch and Frank Trocco, 2002).
A wonderful but extremely demanding theoretically book on the analog-digital relationship from the early 1970s (1972) was written by Antony Wilden (System and Structure: Essays on Communication). I thought of it upon reading your email because it follows this relationship in contexts of some relevance to what we now call neurobiology.
Because of your student's chronological focus, I would also suggest looking at the understudied history of hybrid analog-digital computer structures. For my own try at briefly introducing this history in the context of an encyclopedic entry, see Aristotle Tympas, ‘Computers: Hybrid’, in Encyclopedia of 20th –Century Technology, Colin Hempstead (editor), Routledge, London, Great Britain, 2005, 202-204. Also, for a survey of some preceding works on the history of analog computing, you may see the references in Aristotle Tympas, ‘Computers: Analog’, in Encyclopedia of 20th-Century Technology, Colin Hempstead (editor), Routledge, London, Great Britain, 2005, 195-199.
I hope this helps,
Telly
Hello,
One of our students is studying the early use of electronic computers in neurophysiology, and has hit upon a 1967 controversy between Experimental/ Analogue and Digital approaches, when DEC LINCs were installed. What reading would you recommend on this topic ? (I remember James Small addressed this controversy in his dissertation, some 20 years ago - and so did, more recently, Paul Edwards in "The Closed World")
Thanks ! Pierre Mounier-Kuhn
CNRS & Université Paris-Sorbonne 28 rue Serpente, 75006 Paris
Thanks a lot to all of you who offered references and comments, in response to my query about the controversy between Analogue and Digital approaches / electronic computers in neurophysiology. Best, Pierre-E. Mounier-Kuhn CNRS & Université Paris-Sorbonne 28 rue Serpente, 75006 Paris A 1950 analogue computer's second life : http://www.aconit.org/histoire/a_sea_ome.php
Hi All, Aristotle - thanks for mentioning my work. My thesis is due to be published as a book in the coming months. Those interested can find me on Amazon. Pierre - I might have some material of interest to your student. They are very welcome to contact directly if that's helpful. Kind regards, Charlie On 21 May 2010 14:18, Pierre Mounier <mounier@msh-paris.fr> wrote:
Thanks a lot to all of you who offered references and comments, in response to my query about the controversy between Analogue and Digital approaches / electronic computers in neurophysiology. Best, Pierre-E. Mounier-Kuhn
CNRS & Université Paris-Sorbonne 28 rue Serpente, 75006 Paris
A 1950 analogue computer's second life :
http://www.aconit.org/histoire/a_sea_ome.php _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members@sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://sigcis.org/pipermail/members/ and you can change your subscription options at http://sigcis.org/mailman/listinfo/members
James Small's dissertation did finally get published as a book:
The Analogue Alternative: The Electronic Analogue Computer in Britain and the USA, 1930–1975 (Routledge, 2001).
It's a terrific book and the only thing of its kind about computers (stops in 1975, as the title mentions, though). Unfortunately it is insanely expensive - well over $100, and not many used copies floating around.
On a side note: if anyone comes across an affordable used copy of Small's, I would love to buy it. It is wonderfully informative -- and oddly pricey.
On May 19, 2010, at 4:01 AM, Pierre Mounier wrote:
One of our students is studying the early use of electronic computers in neurophysiology, and has hit upon a 1967 controversy between Experimental/ Analogue and Digital approaches, when DEC LINCs were installed. What reading would you recommend on this topic ?
I suspect that Joe November is monitoring this list and will chime in, but just in case, have your student read his dissertation, which has a wonderful chapter on the LINC, and also addresses the analog-digital divide. -Nathan -- Nathan Ensmenger History & Sociology of Science University of Pennsylvania www.sas.upenn.edu/~nathanen
DEC LINCs
Wes Clark demonstrated LINC at the Vintage Computer Festival (November 2007). There is a tribute page for the event, with some video and extensive history of the system, on Bruce Damer's Digibarn page: http://www.digibarn.com/stories/linc/index.html
The MIT Museum has both an original LINC and the DEC LINC computers in its collections. Prof. Joseph November (Univ. South Carolina) studied them rather extensively for his dissertation (and fothcoming book about computers and biomedical research). I would encourage contact with Joe. Debbie Douglas Deborah G. Douglas, Ph.D. Curator of Science and Technology MIT Museum, N51-209 265 Massachusetts Ave. Cambridge, MA 02139 tel. 617-253-1766 | fac. 617-253-8994 | ddouglas@mit.edu http://web.mit.edu/museum | http://museum.mit.edu/150 On May 19, 2010, at 4:01 AM, Pierre Mounier wrote:
Hello,
One of our students is studying the early use of electronic computers in neurophysiology, and has hit upon a 1967 controversy between Experimental/ Analogue and Digital approaches, when DEC LINCs were installed. What reading would you recommend on this topic ? (I remember James Small addressed this controversy in his dissertation, some 20 years ago - and so did, more recently, Paul Edwards in "The Closed World")
Thanks ! Pierre Mounier-Kuhn
CNRS & Université Paris-Sorbonne 28 rue Serpente, 75006 Paris
_______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members@sigcis.org, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://sigcis.org/pipermail/members/ and you can change your subscription options at http://sigcis.org/mailman/listinfo/members
Dear all A heads up to a forthcoming title in Routledge's International Studies in Business History. Of course, I have a vested interest and would appreciate any pre-order or actual order from your library. Best Bernardo (University of Leicester) ------------------------------ *Technological Innovation in Retail Finance<http://tandf.msgfocus.com/c/13TRk9oVQYVNvoxmVM> * International Historical PerspectivesEdited by *Bernado Batiz-Lazo*, *J. Carles Maixé-Altés*, *Paul Thomes* Read More <http://tandf.msgfocus.com/c/13TRkyDgMMKaMzhFIz> | Recommend to Librarian <http://tandf.msgfocus.com/c/13TRkXRBIAyy3K1Yvm> This edited volume offers a new and original approach to the study of technological change in retail finance. Documenting developments in the US alongside case studies from Mexico and Western Europe, Technological Innovation in Retail Finance addresses the variety of financial institutions that populated the markets for retail finance. It offers a massive research base reflecting not only breadth of contributor interests, but also a unity of purpose that comes from several workshops and comments on each other's work. Technological innovation had a major role in the shaping and developing of administrative procedures, routines, and capabilities in organizations offering retail financial services. Indeed, with the exception of contemporary case studies for the UK, the current ‘state of the art’ in the study of the computerization of financial services from an historical perspective is overwhelmingly focused on developments in the USA. This volume overcomes the usual bias towards the so called ‘Atlantic continuity’ in the understanding of technological change related to applications of information and telecommunication technologies (ICT) by offering a number of sources of distinctiveness. It shows when and how technological change altered the competitive intensity in the markets for retail finance. October 2010 | Hardback: 978-0-415-88067-1 ------------------------------ [image: cover] <http://tandf.msgfocus.com/c/13TRln5WEomVkUMhi9>* *These books are part of our *Routledge International Studies in Business History*series. To view all the titles click here<http://tandf.msgfocus.com/c/13TRnOtYfdfaZXg60T>
participants (9)
-
Aristotle Tympas -
Bernardo Batiz-Lazo -
Charles Care -
Debbie -
Evan Koblentz -
Jeffery Stein -
Nathan Ensmenger -
Paul Edwards -
Pierre Mounier