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Electronic “giant brain” has memory improved
Sept., I953.1
CURRENT T o r l c s
Silver Graphite Sliding Contacts or Brushes.--An innovation in sliding contacts or brushes for servomechanisms, radar antenna operating units, calculating machines, midget motors and other exacting applications has been announced by the Stackpole Carbon Company, St. Marys, Pa. These Stackpole silver graphite units feature extremely low contact resistance and great resistance to welding for maximum contact efficiency and life at minimum cost. Lowest radio noise levels short of using more costly noble metals are obtained by using these silver-graphite units against a silver ring. For ordinary uses however, a copper ring or commutator will suffice. Available in sizes from 1/16-in. diameter upward, Stackpole silver graphite contacts and brushes can be supplied with pure silver backing for easy spot welding or brazing directly to supporting arms or springs. They can also be furnished with copper backing, integral rivet, or other device to meet almost any mounting requirement. Units are supplied separately or factory-mounted to specifications. They are made of silver with almost any desired percentage of graphite. Standard grades range from 5 to 80 per cent graphite. Electronic "Giant Brain" Has Memory I m p r o v e d . I A new memory for the ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer), first electronic "giant brain," was demonstrated early in July to Army Ordnance officials at the Philadelphia Research Center of Burroughs Corporation (formerly Burroughs Adding Machine Company). The new static magnetic memory, as it is technically called, is the first memory device of its type ever designed and constructed. Using new magnetic techniques, the memory is one of the fastest in existence today.
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Access to information is at the rate of 50,000 "words" per second--a word is a ten decimal digit number, for example, 9,378,462,571. The high rate of reading and storing information is made possible by the use of a new type of magnetic core, specially designed by Burroughs, and used for the first time in this memory. The same electronic and magnetic techniques used in the memory are under development at Burroughs' Philadelphia Research Center for application to information-processing equipment for business use. Constructed under a commission from the United States Army Ordnance Department, the Burroughs memory will increase and quicken the ENIAC's operation, to give it the flexibility and capacity needed to solve large-scale problems. ENIAC's memory capacity will be increased six times by the addition of the Burroughs unit to its original small internal memory. The ENIAC will now be able to "memorize" 120 words at any particular instant. ENIAC, oldest and most famous of the large-scale, high-speed electronic "giant brains," was built for the Army by the Moore School of Electrical Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, during the last years of World War II. Dr. Irven Travis, now Burroughs Vice President in charge of Research and then Supervisor of Research at the Moore School, was associated with its construction. Now housed at the Army's Ballistics Research Laboratories, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, the ENIAC is used to compute shell trajectories, firing and bombing tabIes, the problems of air flow around revolving missiles traveling faster than sound, and of atomic fission. The Burroughs memory will enable the ENIAC to compute these problems in less time.
CURRENT T o r l c s
Silver Graphite Sliding Contacts or Brushes.--An innovation in sliding contacts or brushes for servomechanisms, radar antenna operating units, calculating machines, midget motors and other exacting applications has been announced by the Stackpole Carbon Company, St. Marys, Pa. These Stackpole silver graphite units feature extremely low contact resistance and great resistance to welding for maximum contact efficiency and life at minimum cost. Lowest radio noise levels short of using more costly noble metals are obtained by using these silver-graphite units against a silver ring. For ordinary uses however, a copper ring or commutator will suffice. Available in sizes from 1/16-in. diameter upward, Stackpole silver graphite contacts and brushes can be supplied with pure silver backing for easy spot welding or brazing directly to supporting arms or springs. They can also be furnished with copper backing, integral rivet, or other device to meet almost any mounting requirement. Units are supplied separately or factory-mounted to specifications. They are made of silver with almost any desired percentage of graphite. Standard grades range from 5 to 80 per cent graphite. Electronic "Giant Brain" Has Memory I m p r o v e d . I A new memory for the ENIAC (Electronic Numerical Integrator and Computer), first electronic "giant brain," was demonstrated early in July to Army Ordnance officials at the Philadelphia Research Center of Burroughs Corporation (formerly Burroughs Adding Machine Company). The new static magnetic memory, as it is technically called, is the first memory device of its type ever designed and constructed. Using new magnetic techniques, the memory is one of the fastest in existence today.
303
Access to information is at the rate of 50,000 "words" per second--a word is a ten decimal digit number, for example, 9,378,462,571. The high rate of reading and storing information is made possible by the use of a new type of magnetic core, specially designed by Burroughs, and used for the first time in this memory. The same electronic and magnetic techniques used in the memory are under development at Burroughs' Philadelphia Research Center for application to information-processing equipment for business use. Constructed under a commission from the United States Army Ordnance Department, the Burroughs memory will increase and quicken the ENIAC's operation, to give it the flexibility and capacity needed to solve large-scale problems. ENIAC's memory capacity will be increased six times by the addition of the Burroughs unit to its original small internal memory. The ENIAC will now be able to "memorize" 120 words at any particular instant. ENIAC, oldest and most famous of the large-scale, high-speed electronic "giant brains," was built for the Army by the Moore School of Electrical Engineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, during the last years of World War II. Dr. Irven Travis, now Burroughs Vice President in charge of Research and then Supervisor of Research at the Moore School, was associated with its construction. Now housed at the Army's Ballistics Research Laboratories, Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, the ENIAC is used to compute shell trajectories, firing and bombing tabIes, the problems of air flow around revolving missiles traveling faster than sound, and of atomic fission. The Burroughs memory will enable the ENIAC to compute these problems in less time.