Vannevar Bush

ElizabethMr. ArboComputer Science: Block E5 March 2009

http://www.ibiblio.org/pioneers/bush.html

“Godfather of the wired age” (Griffin)

Early Years

Born – March 11, 1890 in Massachusetts

Aptitude for math in school

Studied engineering at Tufts College on partial scholarship, where he earned a Master’s Degree

Received doctorate in engineering from MIT, where he later worked

(Griffin)

World War I

Member of National Research Council (NRC)

Wanted to produce innovations in weaponry, especially submarine detection

Idea for a device using magnetic fields for detection

(Griffin)

http://www.militarypictures.info/d/108-3/Virginia_class_submarine.jpg

Between Wars

Worked at MIT where he created the first differential analyzer, a machine that calculated equations

Created a rapid selector, which housed a vast amount of information on microfilm.

President of Carnegie Institution(Griffin)

World War II

Felt cooperation between scientists and government was necessary

Created the National Defense Research Committee (NDRC) for mobilizing military research

Involved in creation of atomic bomb

His work helped the United States win the war and changed the method of scientific research in the country

(Long)

http://blog.lib.umn.edu/snackeru/greet/atomic-bomb.jpg

Written Work

“Science-The Endless Frontier” Called for need of continued research

through a National Research Foundation

“As We May Think” Describes the “memex” – a theoretical

machine meant to extend human memory

This idea is similar to modern hypertext

(Griffin)

Works Cited

Griffin, Scott. “Vannevar Bush.” Internet Pioneers. 5 March 2009. <http://www.ibibl

io.org/pioneers/bush.html>. Long, Doug. Vannevar Bush: The

Man Behind the Scenes of the Atomic Bomb. 5 March 2009. <http://www.doug-long.com/bush

.htm>.