Atanasoff, John Vincent
John Vincent Atanasoff (1903-1995), American designer who developed the first electronic computer in 1939. Working with Clifford Berry at Iowa State University from 1937-1942, Atanasoff led several major innovations in computing including the use of binary arithmetic, regenerative memory, parallel processing, and separation of memory and computing functions. The Atanasoff computer thus heads the family tree of today's personal computers and mainframes. However, Atanasoff’s contribution was not recognized until a lengthy patent trial ended in 1973 and declared John W. Mauchly and J. P. Eckert's patent for the 'electronic numerical integrator and computer' (ENIAC) invalid and named Atanasoff the inventor of the electronic digital computer.
Further Reading
- Iowa State University, Department of Computer Science. John Vincent Atanasoff and the Birth of the Digital Computer.
- Scalable Computing Laboratory. Rebuilding the ABC: 60 years of ditigal computing.
