The Unparalleled Genius of John von Neumann (2019)

Post by joelbluminator » Wed, Apr 07, 2021, 6:20 AM UTC

suifbwish wrote: post #105

jshier wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This isn't really true. There was no existing architecture and even if there was, Eckert and Mauchly weren't the only ones involved. ENIAC itself encapsulated almost none of the Von Neumann architecture principles. While it's true Von Neumann's paper started as a summary of ongoing discussions on computer architecture for the EDVAC with a group that included Eckert, Mauchly, Arthur Burks, and others, Von Neumann's pr…

Fascinating when individuals of such advanced intelligence are not obsessed with immortality. Either They believe it is not possible or they are secretly a god trying to escape the boredom of already having long since achieved it.

Post by Hydraulix989 » Wed, Apr 07, 2021, 6:28 AM UTC

croes wrote: post #126

Rochus wrote: post #13

> von Neumann proposed a description for a computer architecture now known as the von Neumann architecture Well, he actually described an already existing design by Eckert and Mauchly under his name and this paper was illegally disclosed. For the ones interested in this and other fascinating stories about ENIAC, here is a good book: https://www.amazon.com/Eniac-Triumphs-Tragedies-Worlds-Compu... ; worth reading is al…

ENIAC the worlds first computer? What about Z3 by Konrad Zuse? https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Z3_(computer)

Post by adrian_b » Wed, Apr 07, 2021, 6:29 AM UTC

masswerk wrote: post #83

devindotcom wrote: post #76

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Interesting if true but it seems odd to think that Von Neumann of all people in the 20th century perhaps would need to steal someone's ideas. From what I've read of him he was more likely to improve on them before the ideator had finished speaking. But certainly those were days (if indeed we have left them) when 'great men' like him could and would take credit for something like that for reasons of pride and posterit…

Eckert accused von Neumann specifically of doing so that he could consult for IBM on the matter. However, there is a problem with this: As I understand it, IBM wasn't that interested in computers at the time and actually stumbled into (electronic digital) computing by a government contract for replicating Whirlwind for the Semi Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE). On the other hand, Eckert also pointed out some inter…

Post by stephc_int13 » Wed, Apr 07, 2021, 6:32 AM UTC

hntrader wrote: post #110

stephc_int13 wrote: post #20

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From a genetic standpoint, all humans are 99.9% identical beasts. There is of course some genetic components in potential abilities. But I strongly believe that most of the differences we are seeing are built on compounded interest of environmental factors, starting from a very young age.

You strongly believe this based on what? Being "99.9 percent identical" doesn't necessarily preclude substantial genetic variation in intelligence just like it doesn't preclude such variation in height or skin tone. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heritability_of_IQ

Post by Hydraulix989 » Wed, Apr 07, 2021, 6:37 AM UTC

adverbly wrote: post #42

pointedset wrote: post #10

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Yes, those two facts about zero/empty cases (and so many more) are definitely related, and this class of facts is one of my favourites! Usually, if you're dealing with something algebraic in flavour (which is a very vague concept, sorry), there will be a sensible way to define the zero/empty case. This is often a good test of whether you have a uniform concept that works for all n without corner cases. It almost irri…

Couple more fun examples: all([]) == True any([]) == False