The History of the Atomic Bomb

Development and History of the Atomic Bomb and The Manhattan Project

"My God, what have we done " ! "obert #ewis, the co!pilot of the $nola Gay, the B!%& that dropped the first atomic bomb'
On August 2, 1939, just before the beginning of World War II, Albert Einstein wrote to then President Franklin ! "oose#elt! Einstein and se#eral other s$ientists told "oose#elt of efforts in %a&i 'er(an) to *urif) uraniu(+ 23,, whi$h $ould be used to build an ato(i$ bo(b! It was shortl) thereafter that the -nited .tates 'o#ern(ent began the serious undertaking known then onl) as /0he 1anhattan Proje$t!/ .i(*l) *ut, the 1anhattan Proje$t was $o((itted to e2*editing resear$h that would *rodu$e a #iable ato(i$ bo(b! 0he (ost $o(*li$ated issue to be addressed in (aking of an ato(i$ bo(b was the *rodu$tion of a(*le a(ounts of /enri$hed/ uraniu( to sustain a $hain rea$tion! At the ti(e, uraniu(+23, was #er) hard to e2tra$t! In fa$t, the ratio of $on#ersion fro( uraniu( ore to uraniu( (etal is ,3341! 5o(*ounding this, the one *art of uraniu( that is finall) refined fro( the ore is o#er 996 uraniu(+237, whi$h is *ra$ti$all) useless for an ato(i$ bo(b! 0o (ake the task e#en (ore diffi$ult, the useful -+23, and nearl) useless -+237 are isoto*es, nearl) identi$al in their $he(i$al (akeu*! %o ordinar) $he(i$al e2tra$tion (ethod $ould se*arate the(8 onl) (e$hani$al (ethods $ould work! A (assi#e enri$h(ent laborator)9*lant was $onstru$ted at Oak "idge, 0ennessee! :arold 5! -re) and his $olleagues at 5olu(bia -ni#ersit) de#ised an e2tra$tion s)ste( that worked on the *rin$i*le of gaseous diffusion, and Ernest O! ;awren$e <in#entor of the 5)$lotron= at the -ni#ersit) of 5alifornia in >erkele) i(*le(ented a *ro$ess in#ol#ing (agneti$ se*aration of the two isoto*es! %e2t, a gas $entrifuge was used to further se*arate the lighter -+23, fro( the hea#ier, non+fissionable -+237! On$e all of these *ro$edures had been $o(*leted, all that needed to be done was to *ut to the test the entire $on$e*t behind ato(i$ fission </s*litting the ato(,/ in la)(an?s ter(s=! O#er the $ourse of si2 )ears, fro( 1939 to 19@,, (ore than A2 billion was s*ent during the histor) of the 1anhattan Proje$t! 0he for(ulas for refining uraniu( and *utting together a working ato(i$ bo(b were $reated and seen to their logi$al ends b) so(e of the greatest (inds of our ti(e! 5hief a(ong the *eo*le who unleashed the *ower of the ato( was B! "obert O**enhei(er, who o#ersaw the *roje$t fro( $on$e*tion to $o(*letion! Finall), the da) $a(e when all at ;os Ala(os would find out if /0he 'adget/ <$ode+ na(ed as su$h during its de#elo*(ent= was going to be the $olossal dud of the $entur) or *erha*s an end to the war! It all $a(e down to a fateful (orning in (idsu((er, 19@,! At ,4294@, <1ountain War 0i(e= on Bul) 1C, 19@,, in a white bla&e that stret$hed fro( the basin of the Be(e& 1ountains in northern %ew 1e2i$o to the still+dark skies, /0he 'adget/ ushered in the Ato(i$ Age! 0he light of the e2*losion then turned orange as the ato(i$ fireball began shooting u*wards at 3C3 feet *er se$ond, reddening and *ulsing as it $ooled! 0he $hara$teristi$ (ushroo( $loud of radioa$ti#e #a*or (ateriali&ed at 33,333 feet! >eneath the $loud, all that re(ained of the soil at the blast site were frag(ents of jade green radioa$ti#e glass $reated b) the heat of the rea$tion!

0he brilliant light fro( the detonation *ier$ed the earl) (orning skies with su$h intensit) that residents fro( a farawa) neighboring $o((unit) would swear that the sun $a(e u* twi$e that da)! E#en (ore astonishing is that a blind girl saw the flash 123 (iles awa)! -*on witnessing the e2*losion, its $reators had (i2ed rea$tions! Isidor "abi felt that the eDuilibriu( in nature had been u*set ++ as if hu(ankind had be$o(e a threat to the world it inhabited! B! "obert O**enhei(er, though e$stati$ about the su$$ess of the *roje$t, Duoted a re(e(bered frag(ent fro( the >haga#ad 'ita! /I a( be$o(e eath,/ he said, /the destro)er of worlds!/ Een >ainbridge, the test dire$tor, told O**enhei(er, /%ow we?re all sons of bit$hes!/ After #iewing the results se#eral *arti$i*ants signed *etitions against loosing the (onster the) had $reated, but their *rotests fell on deaf ears! 0he Bornada del 1uerto of %ew 1e2i$o would not be the last site on *lanet Earth to e2*erien$e an ato(i$ e2*losion! (cientists )ho *nvented the Atomic Bomb +nder the Manhattan Project, "obert O**enhei(er, a#id >oh(, ;eo .&ilard, Eugene Wigner, Otto Fris$h, "udolf Peierls, Feli2 >lo$h, %iels >ohr, E(ilio .egre, Ba(es Fran$k, Enri$o Fer(i, Elaus Fu$hs and Edward 0eller! Fiew a $o*) of the letter Einstein wrote "oose#elt that *ro(*ted the 1anhattan Proje$t!

-o dia % de a.osto de /&0&, lo.o antes o come1o de ($G2-DA G2$""A M2-D*A#, o Albert $instein escreve+ a ent3o Presidente 4ran5lin D' "oosevelt' 6 $instein e v7rios o+tros cientistas falaram para o "oosevelt de esfor1os na -a8i Germany de p+rificar +r9nio!%0: ;+e poderia ser +sado para constr+ir +ma bomba at<mica' $ra brevemente depois disso ;+e o Governo de $stados 2nidos come1o+ o empreendimento s=rio conhecido ent3o s> como "6 Projeto de Manhattan'" (implesmente ponha, o Projeto de Manhattan foi cometido a despachar pes;+isa ;+e prod+8iria +ma bomba at<mica vi7vel' 6 ass+nto mais complicado a ser endere1ado fa8endo de +ma bomba at<mica era a prod+13o de amplas ;+antias de +r9nio "enri;+ecido" para s+stentar +ma rea13o de cadeia' -a ocasi3o, +r9nio!%0: era m+ito d+ro e?trair' -a realidade, a rela13o de convers3o de min=rio de +r9nio para metal de +r9nio = :@@,/' Aompondo isto, a +ma parte de +r9nio ;+e = finalmente refinado do min=rio est7 em cima de &&B +r9nio!%0C ;+e = praticamente inDtil para +ma bomba at<mica' Para fa8er a tarefa at= mesmo mais difEcil, o 2!%0: Dtil e 2!%0C ;+ase inDtil s3o isotopes, ;+ase idFntico na ma;+ila.em ;+Emica delesGdelas' -enh+m m=todo de e?tra13o ;+Emico ordin7rio poderia os separarH s> m=todos mec9nicos poderiam trabalhar' 2m laboratoryGplant de enri;+ecimento vol+moso foi constr+Edo em A+me de Aarvalho, Tennessee' Harold A' 2rey e os cole.as dele em 2niversidade de Aol+mbia inventaram +m sistema de e?tra13o ;+e trabalho+ no princEpio de dif+s3o .asosa, e $rnest 6' #awrence Io inventor do AiclotronJ na 2niversidade de Aalif>rnia em Ber5eley implemento+ +m processo ;+e envolve separa13o ma.n=tica do dois isotopes' #o.o, +ma centrEf+.a de .7s foi +sada para adicional separe o 2!%0: mais claro do 2!%0C mais pesado, non!capa8 de fiss3o n+clear' 2ma ve8 todos estes procedimentos tinham sido completados, t+do a;+ilo precisados ser feito eram colocar a teste o conceito inteiro atr7s de fendimento at<mico I"dividindo o 7tomo", na cl7+s+las de lei.oJ'

$m cima do c+rso de seis anos, de /&0& a /&K:, mais de L% bilh3o estava .asto d+rante a hist>ria do Projeto de Manhattan' 4oram criadas as f>rm+las por refinar +r9nio e re+nir +ma bomba at<mica de f+ncionamento e c+idadas dos fins l>.icos delesGdelas por al.+mas das maiores mentes de nosso tempo' Ahefe entre as pessoas ;+e soltaram o poder do 7tomo era M' "obert 6ppenheimer ;+e vi.io+ o projeto de concep13o para concl+s3o' 4inalmente, o dia veio ;+ando t+do a #os Alamos descobririam se "6 Dispositivo" Ic>di.o!nomeo+ como tal d+rante se+ desenvolvimentoJ ia ser a dro.a colossal do s=c+lo o+ talve8 +m fim para a .+erra' T+do desce+ +ma manh3 fatal em solstEcio de ver3o, /&K:' Ns :,%&,K: ITempo de G+erra MontFsJ no dia /O de j+lho de /&K:, em +ma chama branca ;+e estiro+ da bacia das Montanhas de Meme8 em -ovo M=?ico do norte para os c=+s ainda!esc+ros, ;+e "6 Dispositivo" cond+8i+ na *dade At<mica' A l+8 da e?plos3o ent3o se ficada laranja como o .lobo de fo.o at<mico come1o+ a atirar acima a 0O@ p=s por se.+ndo, en;+anto avermelhando e p+lsando como esfrio+' A n+vem em forma de co.+melo caracterEstica de vapor radioativo materiali8o+ a 0@,@@@ p=s' $m bai?o da n+vem, t+do a;+ilo permanecido da terra no local de e?plos3o era fra.mentos de jade ;+e copo radioativo verde crio+ pelo calor da rea13o' Part Two, -+clear 4issionG-+clear 4+sion

"elated #in5s -+clear *nnovations 1ore detailed infor(ation on different nu$lear in#entions and the histor) of nu$lear *h)si$s! 0i(eline of nu$lear te$hnolog) and (ajor figures in radiation histor)! Albert $instein 'er(an+A(eri$an *h)si$ist who de#elo*ed the s*e$ial and general theories of relati#it) + the iron) for this idealisti$ (an was that his fa(ous *ostulation of an energ)+(ass eDuation, whi$h states that a *arti$le of (atter $an be $on#erted into an enor(ous Duantit) of energ), had its s*e$ta$ular *roof in the $reation of the ato(i$ and h)drogen bo(bs, the (ost destru$ti#e wea*ons e#er known! Pl+toni+m on the *nternet

*nventors of the Modern Aomp+ter

The 4irst 4reely Pro.rammable Aomp+ter invented by Ponrad

Q+se
>) 1ar) >ellis

Ponrad Q+se *nventors of the Modern Aomp+ter (eries H Table of Aontents H -e?t Ahapter Bohn Atanasoff I 5lifford >err) and the A>5 5o(*uter $-T$" Ponrad Q+se on the )eb H More "eadin. on Ponrad Q+se Eonrad Guse biogra*h) and te$hni$al details on his $o(*uters!

Ponrad Q+se <1913+199,= was a $onstru$tion engineer for the :ens$hel Air$raft 5o(*an) in >erlin, 'er(an) at the beginning of WWII! Eonrad Guse earned the se(ioffi$ial title of /in#entor of the (odern $o(*uter/ for his series of auto(ati$ $al$ulators, whi$h he in#ented to hel* hi( with his length) engineering $al$ulations! Guse has (odestl) dis(issed the title while *raising (an) of the in#entions of his $onte(*oraries and su$$essors as being eDuall) if not (ore i(*ortant than his own! One of the (ost diffi$ult as*e$ts of doing a large $al$ulation with either a slide rule or a (e$hani$al adding (a$hine is kee*ing tra$k of all inter(ediate results and using the(, in their *ro*er *la$e, in later ste*s of the $al$ulation! Eonrad Guse wanted to o#er$o(e that diffi$ult)! :e reali&ed that an auto(ati$+$al$ulator de#i$e would reDuire three basi$ ele(ents4 a $ontrol, a (e(or), and a $al$ulator for the arith(eti$!

Ponrad Q+seRs Q/ Airca /&0C In 193C, Guse (ade a (e$hani$al $al$ulator $alled the G1, the first binar) $o(*uter! Guse used it to e2*lore se#eral groundbreaking te$hnologies in $al$ulator de#elo*(ent4 floating+*oint arith(eti$, high+$a*a$it) (e(or) and (odules or rela)s o*erating on the )es9no *rin$i*le! Guse?s ideas, not full) i(*le(ented in the

G1, su$$eeded (ore with ea$h G *rotot)*e! In 1939, Guse $o(*leted the G2, the first full) fun$tioning ele$tro+(e$hani$al $o(*uter! Eonrad Guse $o(*leted the G3 in 19@1, with re$)$led (aterials donated b) fellow uni#ersit) staff and students! 0his was the world?s first ele$troni$, full) *rogra((able digital $o(*uter based on a binar) floating+*oint nu(ber and swit$hing s)ste(! Guse used old (o#ie fil( to store his *rogra(s and data for the G3, instead of using *a*er ta*e or *un$hed $ards! Pa*er was in short su**l) in 'er(an) during the war! A$$ording to /0he ;ife and Work of Eonrad Guse/ <b) :orst Guse= In 19@1, the G3 $ontained al(ost all of the features of a (odern $o(*uter as defined b) Bohn #on %eu(ann and his $olleagues in 19@C! 0he onl) e2$e*tion was the abilit) to store the *rogra( in the (e(or) together with the data! Eonrad Guse did not i(*le(ent this feature in the G3, be$ause his C@+word (e(or) was too s(all to su**ort this (ode of o*eration! ue to the fa$t that he wanted to $al$ulate thousands of instru$tions in a (eaningful order, he onl) used the (e(or) to store #alues or nu(bers! 0he blo$k stru$ture of the G3 is #er) si(ilar to a (odern $o(*uter! 0he G3 $onsisted of se*arate units, su$h as a *un$h ta*e reader, $ontrol unit, floating+*oint arith(eti$ unit, and in*ut9out*ut de#i$es! Eonrad Guse wrote the first algorith(i$ *rogra((ing language $alled ?PlankalkJl? in 19@C, whi$h he used to *rogra( his $o(*uters! :e wrote the world?s first $hess+ *la)ing *rogra( using PlankalkJl! 0he Plan5al5Sl lan.+a.e in$luded arra)s and re$ords and used a st)le of assign(ent <storing the #alue of an e2*ression in a #ariable= in whi$h the new #alue a**ears in the right $olu(n! An arra) is a $olle$tion of identi$all) t)*ed data ite(s distinguished b) their indi$es <or /subs$ri*ts/=, for e2a(*le written so(ething like AKi,j,kL, where A is the arra) na(e and i, j and k are the indi$es! Arra)s are best when a$$essed in an un*redi$table order! 0his is in $ontrast to lists, whi$h are best when a$$essed seDuentiall)! Guse was unable to $on#in$e the %a&i go#ern(ent to su**ort his work for a $o(*uter based on ele$troni$ #al#es! 0he 'er(ans thought the) were $lose to winning the War and felt no need to su**ort further resear$h! 0he G1 through G3 (odels were destro)ed during the war along with Guse A**aratebau, the first $o(*uter $o(*an) that Guse for(ed in 19@3! Guse left for Guri$h to finish his work on the G@, s(uggling the G@ fro( 'er(an) in a (ilitar) tru$k, whi$h he hid in stables on route to Guri$h, .wit&erland! :e $o(*leted and installed the G@ in the A**lied 1athe(ati$s i#ision of Guri$h?s Federal Pol)te$hni$al Institute, in use there until 19,,! 0he G@ had a (e$hani$al (e(or) with a $a*a$it) of 1,32@ words and se#eral $ard readers! Guse no longer had to use (o#ie fil( to store *rogra(s8 he $ould now use *un$hed $ards! 0he G@ had *un$hes and #arious fa$ilities to enable fle2ible *rogra((ing in$luding address translation and $onditional bran$hing! In 19@9, he (o#ed ba$k to 'er(an) to for( a se$ond $o(*an) $alled Guse E' for the $onstru$tion and (arketing of his designs! Guse later rebuilt (odels of the G3 in 19C3 and the G1 in 197@!

Konrad Zuse
Born June 22, 1910, Berlin-Wilmersdorf; German inventor of pre-war electromechanical binar computer desi!nated "1 which was destro ed without trace b wartime bombin!; developed two more machines before the end of the war but was unable to convince the #a$i !overnment to support his wor%; fled with the remains of "& to "urich where he developed the "' which was successfull used at ()*+ ,eveloper of a basic pro!rammin! s stem %nown as -.lan%al%/l- with which he desi!ned a chess pla in! pro!ram+ Education and Experience: B 1920 1onrad "use had enrolled at the )echnical 2niversit in Berlin-3harlottenbur! and be!an his wor%in! career as a desi!n en!ineer 45tati%er6 in the aircraft industr 4*enschel 7lu!$eu!wer%e6 and b 19&8 he had completed a de!ree in civil en!ineerin!+ *e remained in Berlin from the time he finished his de!ree until the end of the war in 19'8, and it was durin! this time that he constructed his first di!ital computers+ *e later formed his own compan for the construction and mar%etin! of his desi!ns+ Honors and Awards: *onorarprofessor, Geor!-9u!ust-2niversitat, G:ttin!en6, 19;;; Honorary Degrees; ,r+-<n!+(+h+, )+2+ Berlin-3harlottenbur!, 198;; ,r+rer+nat+h+c+, 2niversit of *ambur!, 1909; ,r+rer+nat+h+c, )+2+ ,resden, 19=1; ,r+techn+h+c+, 2niversitait >e %?avi%, <celand, 19=;; ,r+rer+nat+h+c+, 2niversit of ,ortmund, 1991;

,r+h+c+sc+techn+, ()* (id!enossische )echnische *ochschule, "urich, 1991; ,r+<n!+(+h+, *ochschule f+ 9rchite%tur und Ballwesen, Weimar, 1991; ,ottore ad honorem in @atematica, 2niversit of 5iena, <tal , 1992; <nlAndische 9us$eichnun!enB(hrun!enC Werner-von-5iemens->in!, 5tiftun! Werner-von- 5iemens->in!, 19;'; ,ieselmedaille in Gold, ,(D ,eutscher (rfinder- DerbandB#urnber!, 19;9; Grosses Derdienst%reu$ des Derdienstordens der Bundesrepubli% ,eutschland, 1902,, mit 5tern, 19=86; (hrenmit!lied der ,eutschen 9%ademie der #aturforscher E(F.FE,<#9, *alleB5aale, 1902; 9achener und @unchener .reis, 3arl-9rthur-.astor- 5tiftun!, 1uratorium der 9achener und @unchener Dersicherun!s 9G, 19=0; (hrenpla%ette der 5tadt Bad *ersfeld, 19=0; 1onrad-"use-@edaille, ",BB"entralverband des ,eut- schen Bau!ewerbes6 19=& Bernhard-Weiss-.la%ette, D,@9BDerband ,eutscher @aschinenund 9nla!enbau e+D+B,usseldorf, 19=1; Ba erischer @aGimiliansorden, Ba erischer @inisterprasident, 19='; Goldener (hrenrin!, ,eutsches @useumB@unchen, 19='; 3othenius-@edaille, E(F.FE,<#9, ,eutsche 9%ade- mie der #aturforscherB*alle 5aale, 19=8 ; (rnst->euter-.la%ette, 5enat Berlin, 19=8; D,(-(hrenrin!, Derband ,eutscher (le%trotechni%er e+D+B,usseldorf, 19=;; .hilip-@orris-(hrenpreis, .hilip @orris Gmb*B,9B(<, 19=0; Wilhelm-Eeuschner-@edaille, *essischer @inisterprasident, 19=0; (hrenmit!liedC ,eutsche 9%ademie der #aturforscher E(opoll,<#9, *alleB5aale, 1902; 9%ademischer Derein @otiv, 19=2; Derein des 5chleswi!-*olsteinisches @useums fur >echen- und 5chreibtechni% e+D+, 9lt$enhol$, heuteC @<3F@, 19=&; Gesellschaft fur <nformati% e+D+BG< 19=; Derein islandischer <n!enieure, >e %?avi%B<sland, 19=8; ,eutsches @useum, @unchen, 1990; Dereini!un! der 7reunde und 7:rderer der <n!enieur- schule an der 7achhochschule 5chmal%alden e+D+, 1992; (hrenburaerrechtC (hrenbur!errecht der 5tadt *unfeld, 1908; #amensHebunHC 1onrad-"use-5trasse, in Bad *ersfeldB*essen, 1902; 1onrad-"use5chule, in */nfeldB*essen, 190=; 1onrad-"use-@edaille, ",B "entralverband des ,eutschen Bau!ewerbes und G<BGesellschaft f+ lnformati% e+D+, 19=1; 1onrad-"use"entrum f/r <nformationstechni% BerlinB"<B, in Berlin, 19='; 1onrad-"use-"ertifi%at, 7reundes%reis der Berufl+ 5chulen e+D+BBad *ersfeld, 19=8; "use->aum, Berufliche 5chulenBBad *ersfeld, 19=8; 1onrad-"use-Gesellschaft, Grundun! am ;+ 9+ == in */nfeld, 19==; 1onrad-"use-*aus, 7a+ .,5 .ro!ramm I 5oftware Gmb*, >otenbur!BWumme, 19=9; 1onrad-"use-.ro!ramm, 7:rderun! v+ Gastdo$enten auslAndischer *ochschullehrer - ,99,B,eutscher 9%a-demischer 9ustauschdienst, Bonn, 1991; 1onrad-"use-"immer, 5chel$tor-G mnasium, (sslin!en, 1991; "usestrasse, in 0-*o erswerda, 1991+ During 1936 to 1938 Konrad Zuse developed and built the first binary digital computer in the world (Zl ! " copy of this computer is on display in the #useum for $ransport and $echnology (%#useum fur &er'ehr und $echni'% (since 1989 in (erlin! $he first fully functional program)controlled electromechanical digital computer in the world (the Z3 was completed by Zuse in 19*1+ but was destroyed in 19** during the war! (ecause of its historical importance+ a copy was made in 196, and put on display in the -erman #useum (%Deutsches #useum% in #unich! .e/t came the more sophisticated Z*+ which was the only Zuse Z)machine to survive the war! $he Z* was almost complete when+ due to continued air raids+ it was moved from (erlin to -ottingen where it was installed in the laboratory of the "erodynamische &ersuchanstalt (D&012/perimental "erodynamics 3nstitute ! 3t was only there for a few wee's before -ottingen was in danger of being captured and the machine was once again moved to a small village

%4interstein% in the "llgau1(avaria! 5inally it was ta'en to 6wit7erland where it was installed in the 2$4 (5ederal 8olytechnical 3nstitute1%2idgenossisch $echnische 4ochschule% in Zurich in 199,! 3t was used in the 3nstitute of "pplied #athematics at the 2$4 until 1999!

My first computer and first thoughts about data processing

J1K 3 started in 193*+ wor'ing independently and without 'nowledge of other developments going on around me! 3n fact+ 3 hadn:t even heard of ;harles (abbage when 3 embar'ed on my wor'! "t that time+ the computing industry was limited to mechanical calculators using the decimal system! 8unched card devices were slightly further developed and able to deal with relatively comple/ operations for statistical and accounting purposes! 4owever+ these machines were almost entirely designed for commercial application! $his meant that mathematicians and engineers had to develop computers on their own+ wor'ing independently from one another! 3 was no e/ception! "t the beginning of the 3,s+ while studying civil engineering in (erlin+ 3 decided to develop and build bigger calculating machines+ more suitable for engineering purposes! 3 approached the problem from various angles< 5irstly+ from a logical and mathematical point of view< $his involved 1! program control+ =! the binary system of numbers+ 3! and floating point arithmetic! $oday+ these concepts are ta'en for granted+ but at the time this was new ground for the computing industry! 6econdly+ from the design angle< 1! allowing fully automatic arithmetical calculation+ =! a high)capacity memory+ 3! and modules or relays operating on the yes1no principle! #y research was initially aimed at pure number calculation+ but soon led on (1939136 to new ideas about %computing% in general! 8ersonally+ 3 believe that was the birth of modern computer science! 3 recogni7ed that computing could be seen as a general means of dealing with data and that all data could be represented through bit patterns+ generally spea'ing! $hat led to my basic hypothesis that< %data processing starts with the bit% "t that time+ of course+ 3 didn:t tal' of %bits%+ but of %yes1no status%! >n the basis of this hypothesis 3 defined %computing% as %the formation of new data from input according to a given set of rules% $his basic theory meant that all computing operations could be carried out by relays operating according to the dual status principle ?ust mentioned! $he most suitable devices available at the time were telephone relays! .ow a lin' with mathematical logic had been forged! "s an engineer 3 had no idea of the e/istence of such a discipline! 3 developed a system of %conditional propositions% for relays ) something that corresponded appro/imately to what is 'nown as (oolean algebra today! #y former mathematics teacher showed me that this sort of calculation was identical with the propositional calculus of mathematical logic!

5rom the engineering point of view+ the gap between this and pure mathematical logic was bridged in order to simplify the design and programming of computing machines! "t roughly the same time in 2ngland+ the mathematician and logician "lan $uring was in the process of solving this problem from a different angle! 4e used a very simple computer as a model in order to place theoretical logic on a more formal basis! $uring:s wor' was of ma?or importance for the theory of computer science! 4owever+ his ideas had little influence on the practical development of computing machines! $he theories needed to be put into practice! 5irst of all high)capacity memories had to be designed! "t that time+ (1939 + memory consisted of single registers operating a system of numbered wheels using the decimal system! $ypical problems were the input and retrieval of information+ as well as the choice of counters! ;apacity was fairly restricted+ although some punch card machines were able to deal with up to =, counters! $hese machines generally functioned on the basis that a number could be %added on%! (ut a new problem had to be overcome< pure memory was needed without the adding)on facility+ but with high capacity and a special selection facility+ as well as an elegant way of communicating with the periphery! 3 thought it was a good idea to base such a memory device on binary numbers from the outset! #y idea was to divide the machine up into cells which would be able to hold data for a complete number+ in other words+ the operational sign+ e/ponent and mantissa (where a floating point was being used + as well as additional specifications! @sing the yes)no principle a %word% ) as we would call it today ) could be formed from a series of bits! $he memory elements only needed to store yes)no values! >ne device that could deal with this type of operation was the electro)magnetic relay+ which can adopt two positions+ %open% or %closed%! 4owever+ at the time 3 felt that the problem could be better solved mechanically! 3 played around with all sorts of levers+ pins+ steel plates+ and so on+ until 3 finally reached what was a very useful solution+ for those days! #y device consisted mainly of pins and steel plates+ and in principle could be e/tended to 1+,,, words! " proper machine using telephone relays would have needed *,+,,, relays and filled a whole room! $he basic principle was that a small pin could be positioned right or left of a steel lug+ thus memori7ing the value , or 1! 3nput and retrieval were also effected via a steel)plate construction+ and the individual parts could be stac'ed on top of one another in a system of layers! $he address system also used binary code!A=B $hese machines had the advantage of being made almost entirely of steel+ which made them suitable for mass production! 3ndividual memory elements could be easily arranged in matri/ form+ which was very useful as far as constructing computers was concerned! .ot only was a number memory now available+ but it could also be used to store general data drawn from practically any source! 0ogic studies conducted at the same time had already shown that general calculations with any sort of data structure were possible+ and that this data could be made up entirely of bit combinations! $hat is why 3 had already called the storage system a %combination memory% in the patent application! $his was something new on the (abbage designs! 3t was clear that programs could be stored provided they were composed of bit combinations ) one reason why programmable memory had already been patented by 1936!

3n the course of pursuing the basic principles of mechanical memory 3 developed a mechanical relay technology! $his 3 applied to both programming and calculating parts! "t the time it was not clear whether all operations could be run according to the yes)no principle+ or even whether that was a good idea! $hat was something that was only discovered later after much hard wor'! 3nitially 3 developed various adding machines for binary numbers which used elements providing up to three or four positions! $his was done using both electro)magnetic and mechanical relays! 5inally 3 found a solution which wor'ed on the yes)no principle alone! (y this time the similarities between essentially very different technologies were becoming increasingly obvious! 3 was faced with the choice of using either telephone relays or mechanical technology for my computing machine! "s mechanical memory had proved successful (3 was able to build a wor'ing model in si/ wee's + and because of the frightening number of relays needed in the alternative system+ (around 1+,,, + 3 decided in favor of the mechanical version+ at first! 3nventors are often faced with that sort of decision! $oday+ 3 'now that opting for relays immediately would have been better! 4owever+ wor'ing on a completely private basis+ with) ?ust the help of some friends+ 3 started to construct a mechanical model of the computer! "t first 3 thought it would be possible to produce it Cuic'ly! 3n fact it too' two years to set up a half)way functioning machine which 3 could present to the e/perts! @nfortunately the surviving photos are not very good and the machine itself proved somewhat unreliableD 3n fact+ with the help of switching algebra+ it proved easy to convert mechanical relay circuits for use in electro)magnetic relay technology! "t this point 3 would li'e to mention my friend 4elmut 6chreyer who was wor'ing on the development of electronic relays at that time! 4elmut was a high) freCuency engineer+ and on completing his studies (around 1936 started wor'ing at 8rof! 6tEblein:s 3nstitute at the $echnical @niversity in (erlin) ;harlottenburg! 4elmut+ who was a close personal friend of mine+ suddenly had the bright idea of using vacuum tubes! "t first 3 thought it was one of his student pran's ) he was always full of fun and given to fooling around! (ut after thin'ing about it we decided that his idea was definitely worth a try! $han's to switching algebra+ we had already married together mechanics and electro)magnetics ) two basically different types of technology! Fhy+ then+ not with tubesG $hey could switch a million times faster than elements burdened with mechanical and inductive inertia! $he possibilities were staggering! (ut first basic circuits for the ma?or logical operations such as con?unction+ dis?unction and negation had to be discovered! $ubes could not simply be connected in line li'e relay contacts! Fe agreed that 4elmut should develop the circuits for these elementary operations first+ while 3 dealt with the logical part of the circuitry! >ur aim was to set up elementary circuits so that relay technology could be transferred to the tube system on a one)to)one basis! $his meant the tube machine would not have to be redesigned from scratch! 6chreyer solved this problem fairly Cuic'ly! $his left the way open for further development! Fe cautiously told some friends about the possibilities! $he reaction was anything from e/tremely s'eptical to spontaneously enthusiastic! 3nterestingly enough+ most criticism came from 6chreyer:s colleagues+ who wor'ed with tubes virtually all the time! $hey were doubtful that an apparatus with =+,,, tubes would wor' reliably! $his critical attitude was the result of their own e/perience with large transmitters which

contained several hundred tubes! "part from that+ conditions were not e/actly propitious for the development of a fully tube)operated machine! $he Far had bro'en out in the interim+ ma'ing the procurement of staff and material very difficult! .othing could be done by private initiative! Fe therefore proposed the construction of a =+,,,)tube computer for special use in anti)aircraft defense to the military authorities! "lthough the reaction was initially sympathetic towards the pro?ect we were as'ed simply+ %4ow much time do you thin' you need for itG%! Fe replied+ %"round two years! $he response to this was+ %"nd ?ust how long do you thin' it:ll ta'e us to win the warG%! $he outcome was considerable obstruction and delay in the development of a -erman electronic computing machine! 6chreyer was by now fully engaged in other pro?ects! (y the end of the Far he had constructed a small e/perimental machine for 1, binary digits and around 1,, tubes! (ut this machine was also lost in the general confusion ?ust after the Far! "fter the Far was finally over+ news of the @niversity of 8ennsylvania 2.3"; machine went all round the world ) %18+,,, tubesD%! Fe could only sha'e our heads! Fhat on earth were all the tubes forG 6chreyer and 3 parted company after the Far! "t that time it was prohibited to develop electronic eCuipment in Fest -ermany! "s 6chreyer saw no means of continuing his very interesting research he emigrated to (ra7il to ta'e up a university chair! 6chreyer died in 1989! $he 2nglish development 'nown as ;>0>66@6 was unheard of outside the circle of those wor'ing on it! 3t was only much later that the wraps came off this very interesting pro?ect! 3n 198, 6chreyer and 3 had the opportunity to spea' to the ;>0>66@6 people in 2ngland! Fe compared our circuits and it turned out that there were considerable similarities! $he 2nglish had also been wor'ing on logical operations and other similar design principles! (y the end of 1938 it seemed clear that electro)magnetic relays offered the best chance of producing a reliable operating computer Cuic'ly! (efore 3 redesigned the Z1 to operate completely with relays 3 made a test with a small pilot machine+ the Z=! 3 used the mechanical memory of the Z1 with a low storage capacity (16 words + as well as the card punch and reader to build a simple computer with =,, relays operating with 16 bits and on the basis of fi/ed) point arithmetic! Houng transmitter specialists+ including 6chreyer and other friends of mine+ helped me design the circuits and choose the appropriate components! (ut although their advice was a great help+ to a certain e/tent 3 e/pressly set out to e/plore new ground! $he most important thing seemed to be to 'eep the freCuency absolutely even+ so that one cycle eCualed one addition+ itself comprising several steps! 5reCuency was set using rotating dis's or rollers which were covered in alternating strips of conducting and non)conducting material+ contact being made via carbon brushes $his principle had many advantages! $ests could be run on the machine at any speed! "nother advantage was that spar' e/tinction too' place at the brushes and not at the relay contacts when circuits were being shutdown! Despite well)meaning advice from some friends+ 3 did not ma'e use of certain well)'nown telephone communication tric's such as delayed)response relays! "ll in all+ 3 was able to gather enough e/perience with the Z= in order to convert the complete Z1 design for relay operation! Fhat emerged was the Z3+ which is now considered to have been the first properly functioning computer in the

world! 3n order to ma'e fast progress the memory was also given a 6*)word capacity+ ma'ing use of relays! $he Z3:s basic specifications were< a binar number s stem floatin! point arithmetic 22-bit word len!th, with 1 bit for the si!n, 0 eGponential bits and a 1'-bit mantissa 2,'00 rela s, ;00 in the calculatin! and pro!ram section and 1,=00 in the memor + $he calculations possible were addition+ subtraction+ multiplication+ and division+ ta'ing the sCuare root+ as well as some ancillary functions! ;onstruction of the machine was interrupted in 1939 when 3 was called up for military service! 3t was typical of the attitude prevalent in -ermany at the time that 3 should be later released from active service+ not to develop computers+ but as an aircraft engineer! 4owever+ in my spare time+ and with the help of friends+ 3 was able to complete the machine! (y 19*1 it was wor'ing and 3 was able to show it to the aircraft construction authorities! $he -erman "ircraft Iesearch 3nstitute in (erlin)"dlershof showed greatest interest! 8rofessor $eichmann+ who had been wor'ing on the problem of wing flutter+ was particularly attracted! @nli'e aircraft stress+ wing flutter results in critical instability due to vibration of the wings+ sometimes in con?unction with the tail unit! ;omple/ calculations were needed in order to overcome this design problem! $he most difficult part was calculating the so)called %KJssner determinants% based on comple/ numbers and un'nown Cuantities in the main diagonal! 3 achieved a brea'through using my eCuipment for this calculation! @nfortunately the "ircraft Iesearch 3nstitute had not been given a high enough priority for me to be released from military service! >nly 8rofessor 4erbert Fagner+ who was wor'ing on the development of remote) controlled flying bombs+ and for whom 3 wor'ed as a stress analyst+ was in this enviable position! 4owever+ Fagner was very understanding+ and helped as much as possible by allowing me to use some of my wor' time on the pro?ect! (y then 3 had already set up my own small engineering business+ the %Zuse) 3ngenieur)(Jro% in (erlin! $he Z3 was later destroyed after bombing raids! (ecause of its historic importance we rebuilt it =, years laterK a replica now stands in the Deutsches #useum in #unich! "round 19*= it was decided to build a more powerful+ improved Z*! Fe thought that we would be able to have it ready within one+ to one)and)a)half years! 3t was to have a mechanical memory with a capacity of 1+,=* words+ several card readers and punches+ and various facilities to enable fle/ible programming (address translation+ conditional branching ! ;onstruction of the machine started well but it was not long before the Far imposed its delays! 3n the end+ construction was not completed until the close of the Far! 8rocurement of staff and materials became increasingly difficult+ and around 19*3 the (erlin blit7 began+ with heavy bomber raids nearly every day! 6everal times we had to move location with the machine! During the last few wee's of the Far we found refuge in -Lttingen! $he Z* was the only model we were able to save+ and this in the face of considerable difficulties! >n the =8 "pril 19*9 we were able to demonstrate the Z* to 8rofessors 8randtl+ (et7 and KJssner! (ut the Festern and 2astern fronts were drawing closer daily and nobody could say whether -Lttingen would be bombed or not+ or whether the

Z* was safe there! $he #inistry of "viation ordered us to ta'e the machine to the underground wor's in the 4ar7! 3t was there that we first learnt of the terrible conditions under which the so)called reprisal weapons ) the &1 and &= ) were being built! Fe refused to leave the machine there+ and+ with the help of Fernher von (raun:s staff+ we managed to get hold of a truc' to transport it elsewhere! "nd so the Z* odyssey continued! Fe then moved south+ ending up in a small "lpine village called 4interstein in the "llgEu+ where we were finally able to find a good place to store the machine!

"round 199,+ after a number of modifications+ the machine was set up in the $echnical @niversity of 6wit7erland in Zurich where it remained for several years+ the only wor'ing computer in 2urope ! $oday it is a historic model and can be seen in the Deutsches #useum in #unich! @nfortunately it:s no longer in full wor'ing order! "nother off)shoot of computer research ought to be mentioned here+ too! (y that 3 mean process control! "t the 4enschel "ircraft 5actory 8rofessor 4erbert Fagner+ for whom 3 wor'ed as a stress analyst+ was involved in developing remote) controlled bombs! $o this end+ the tailplane and wings ) which were constructed of metal with a relatively low degree of precision ) were sub?ected to detailed measurements using gauges at some 8, different points! $he necessary ad?ustments were then calculated to allow for manufacturing inaccuracies! $his reCuired a rather comple/ calculation! 3nitially 3 constructed a special)purpose computer for a fi/ed seCuence of operations using around 9,, relays! $his machine replaced a do7en calculators and wor'ed very reliably for two years+ two shifts a day! $he procedure reCuired a mechanic to read off the gauges! $he values were then recorded and operators entered the figures into the computer! $his led me to build an improved model which could read the gauges automatically and transfer data directly into the computer! $he heart of the machine was a device that today would be called an analog1digital transformer! 8erhaps this was the first process control system in the world! $he machine itself had its own history! 3t completed trial tests on a production line in 6udetenland+ but never reached full operational use as the Far forced the whole factory to be re)located! $he e/act fate of the machine is un'nown ) it:s possible the factory fell into the hands of the Iussians+ who must have been the only ones at the time to own a fully)operational computer! $he Z3 had already been destroyed+ the Z* was not completed+ and the first @6 machines+ #ar' 3 and 2.3";+ were not operational at that time! 4owever+ it is unli'ely that the Iussians would have 'nown what to do with the machine even if they had found it in an undamaged condition! "longside my practical wor' with various computer models 3 started to consider certain theoretical aspects! $he brea'through to a new computing age went hand)in)hand with new scientific ideas and the development of new components! $oday we tal' about hardware and software! $hese e/pressions were really only introduced much later by the "mericans although the terms have now become established! 3t was apparent that a special branch of %computer science% was needed! (ut shortage of time meant that 3 could only scratch the surface in this field! 3nitially 3 wor'ed on my own+ but towards the end of the Far 4err 0ohmeyer+ an outstanding mathematician+ was assigned to assist me! 0ohmeyer was a product of 4einrich 6chol7:s school in #Jnster the latter himself a famous logician! $he lin' with

mathematical logic had already been established! "s a civil engineer 3 was attracted by the prospect of drawing on predicate and relational calculus and e/ploring the possibilities they offered as a basis for computing! $a'e the framewor's used in building construction for e/ample ) were they not similar to the graphs used in relational calculusG @sing pair lists+ it was relatively easy to digitali7e the structure of a framewor' with the aid of relational calculus+ in other words+ to brea' it down into its component data! $his could then be entered into the combination memory+ which had been invented by this time+ and serve as a basis for combination calculations! $his ought to mean that not only purely numerical calculations could be dealt with+ but construction design itself! @p till now only the human mind had been capable of this! $he same idea applied to framewor's and other types of building design! 3 became e/tremely pre) occupied with this new aspect of computing! 3 even went as far as learning to play chess in order to try to formulate the rules of the game in terms of logical calculus! ;hess offered a mass of data structures within a limited space! " symbolic language (the e/pression %algorithmic language% was un'nown to me at the time which could describe chess problems seemed to me to be suitable for all computer machine problems! 8lan'al'Jl was later (19*9 devised with this principle in mind! $his led to my first confrontation with what is 'nown today as %artificial intelligence%! .aturally 3 reali7ed my computer would never be able to run that sort of calculation! (ut combination memory and the general circuitry were a step in the right direction! #any developments were predictable+ of course+ others were still in the realm of fantasy! 3 remember mentioning to friends bac' in 1938 that the world chess champion would be beaten by a computer in 9, years time! $oday we 'now computers are not far from this goal! (ut even in those days Cuite a lot was achieved at the drawing board! $oday we call this computer architecture! $he latter type of machine is 'nown as the Mohn) von).eumann computer+ after its namesa'e who first produced it 1, years later together with -oldstine and (ur's! Fe now 'now this was a very elegant solution! $he Cuestion is why 3 did not use this concept in 1939 if 3 already 'new about it! Fell+ at that time it would have been senseless to try to build that sort of machine+ as the necessary facilities were simply not available! 5or e/ample+ storage capacity was not big enough to cope ) an efficient program memory needs to be able to store several thousand words! 6peed was also too low! 3t:s true that floating point arithmetic can be performed by simply following a series of single instructions (as is the case today ! (ut that means giving 1, to =, times as many instructions! "s long as the electronical prereCuisites were not available it was a waste of time! $wo things were needed first ) high storage capacity ) around 8+,,, words+ as in the first magnetic)drum memories ) and electronic speed! $owards the end of the *,s this seemed possible+ but as -ermans we were not able to participate in this development at the time! $he possibility of a computer being able to deal with numeric calculations and logic organi7ation was so e/citing that 3 gave serious thought to a %logical computing machine%! $his led to the %program compiling machine% pro?ect! For'

was to be split between numerical and logic computers! $hat included such areas as< N construction of e/tensive programs made up of subprograms according to specific parameters N address translation necessary for these programs N capability of dealing with engineering structures (e!g! framewor's using pair lists from which a numerical program could be developed! $his pro?ect was commissioned towards the end of the Far by the #inistry of "viation! 4owever+ the wor' soon proved to be too broadly)based and the ideas never left the drawing board! 6ince then+ the concept of dividing computers according to numerical or logical operation has failed to find favor anywhere! $he dominance of electronics made this unnecessary! $he high speeds obtainable meant that such operations could be carried out by a single machine! 4owever+ one aspect became clear to me in view of all this research between 1936 and 19*6! 6ome means was necessary by which the relationships involved in calculation operations could be precisely formulated! #y answer was %8lan'al'Jl% ) today it would be termed an %algorithmic% language! 4owever+ in those days+ 'nown mathematical and logical forms were not advanced enough! $here were also several other differences today:s languages< 1! 8lan'al'Jl was not conceived as a means of programming the Z* or other computers available at the time! 3ts true purpose was to assist in establishing consistent laws of circuitry+ e!g! for floating point arithmetic+ as well as in planning the seCuence of instructions a computer would follow ) what we would term %hardware% and %software% today! =! 3t was meant to cover the whole spectrum of general calculating! (y contrast+ the program languages which were developed around ten years later were relatively one)sided! $hey were designed specifically for e/isting computing machines+ in other words+ for the first really fle/ible electronic computers! 3n the first instance+ these languages were concerned with conditional branching+ address translation and suchli'e! $here was hardly any demand for logic=1 operations+ such as the application of predicate and relational calculus for engineering constructions+ chess programs and so on! $hat also applied to the brea'down of data into yes)no combinations! 3n other words+ mathematicians did not consider my principle of %data processing starting with the bit% to be of any fundamental importance! 8lan'al'Jl:s wea'ness was that it went into too much depth with regard to difficult calculations which seemed better left to the future! $he importance of my chess program+ as an e/ample of applied logic+ was simply ignored! 3n addition to this+ in the early fifties+ 3 was completely absorbed in building up my business at a time when program languages started to become more relevant! $his meant 3 could not participate in the debate on "lgol and so on! 8lan'al'Jl was later published out of historical interest (in 2nglish+ too+ although it is now unfortunately out of print !

"s has already been mentioned+ 19*9 was a hard time for the -ermans! >ur Z* had been transported with incredible difficulty to the small "lpine village of 4interstein in the "llgEu! #y group and my (erlin firm had been dissolved! "ll of us who had managed to get out of (erlin were happy ?ust to have survived the inferno there! For' on 8lan'al'Jl now continued in wonderful countryside+ undisturbed by bomber attac's+ telephone calls+ visitors and so on! Fithin about a year we were able to set up a %revamped% Z* in full wor'ing order in what had once been a stable! @nli'e research going on in the @6"+ where every possible facility was available+ our means were very limited! $here was no body or organi7ation able to support our wor' at that time in -ermany! .evertheless word got out abroad that some sort of machine was operating in 6outh (avaria! 3(#1@6" instructed the -erman firm 4ollerith -mb4 to see what this was all about! "ll sorts of promising discussions ensued about possible applications for computers in various areas! (ut as everything was decided on the other side of the "tlantic at the time+ no contract was signed! 3nterest was only shown in the industrial property rights! 3t wasn:t even possible to secure a promise that 3 would be able to continue wor' on development! "t that time computers were simply not that important! 4owever+ we did have more success with Iemington Iand+ who commissioned us to continue development+ initially in a special pro?ect dealing with mechanical relay technology! 8eople didn:t trust electronics fully at the time and wanted to have a second option! Fe ourselves were convinced that the future lay with electro)magnetics and electronics! $his meant wor'ing against our own convictions! .evertheless the machine was interesting as it became the first pipeline computer in the world ) a punched card machine with a series of mechanical adding devices using mechanical circuits incorporated between the card reader and the card punch! #ultiplication was carried out by a series of adding operations! $his resulted in a reasonable degree of accuracy despite the relatively slow mechanics! (ut the development of electronic alternatives was progressing at that it was soon not worthwhile continuing with mechanical designs! 4owever+ we were able to produce an interim solution based on our relays prior to the introduction of pure electronic machines+ prototypes of which were being prepared by Iemington in the @6"! $he production run consisted of around forty additional units for punched card machines+ most of which were e/ported to 6wit7erland! "bout the same time we had been able to set up the Z* as a scientific machine in the $echnical @niversity in Zurich! (oth contracts helped us reestablish the Z@62 K- company+ which 3 founded near (ad 4ersfeld in 19*9 with two other partners! $he -erman mar'et slowly began to develop and we started to receive orders from -erman companies! >ne of our first clients was 0eit7+ which than's to the world)famous %0eica% had the necessary financial means to purchase a computer for optics calculations! 0ater other optics firms followed suit+ so that by the mid)9,s we had a virtual monopoly in the field of scientific computers in the optics industry in central 2urope!

(y that time everyone was tal'ing about electronic machines+ but their reliability still left a lot to be desired! $he first were built by scientific institutes for their own special purposes+ as the commercially available machines were not good enough! Fe were able to bridge this gap with our relay computers! >ne thing in our favor was land consolidation+ which was in full swing in -ermany at the time! ;omputers were needed to calculate how fields and land were to be reallocated! $o this end we developed the Z11 which was later further refined and used elsewhere in urban and agricultural surveying+ optics+ etc! $his machine corresponded to what the users wanted ) namely to always 'now how the calculation was progressing+ and to have everything under complete control! 3n the course of time full automation led to a ma7e of branches and impenetrable procedures+ and software became an increasingly urgent problem! Fe also e/perienced and influenced this+ not always happy+ development with our machines! "fter some years+ electronic components achieved a degree of reliability that warranted their production in large numbers! 3nitially we developed a tube model+ the Z==+ moving later to the transistori7ed versions Z=3+ Z31 and Z=9! $hese were based on analytical code+ which meant they were e/tremely fle/ible as far as programming was concerned! $hese were the first types of machine where general calculation using any desired data structure and program storage could be carried out! $he machines were very popular with scientists and engineers+ as they were e/cellent to play around with and all sorts of models for the most diverse problems could be tried out! 6adly+ in most cases our machines could only serve to whet people:s appetites! Fhile our clients were very short of means during the early years of the electronic computer+ research departments were later much better funded+ allowing them to purchase much bigger+ more e/pensive eCuipment! @nfortunately my firm hardly profited from this as we were oriented towards small and medium)si7ed companies! .or did we have enough capital to ta'e part in the development of larger machines! >ur Z11+ Z== and Z=3 are now sought after only as collector:s pieces for museums and so on! >ne development which received much impetus from specialists wor'ing in the surveying field was the automatic drafting board! $he aim was the automatic representation of various maps which had been calculated beforehand by computer! 3t is interesting to note that the surveyors were loo'ing for a very high degree of accuracy and initially only wanted to plot polygon vertices! 5rom this emerged the -raphomat+ the first computer)controlled automatic drawing board! #any others were interested+ too! $hese were our first tentative steps in the direction of ;"D! 0ittle is 'nown about this side of our wor'! 4ere+ too+ we found out that it is not always a good idea to be the early bird! "s early as 196* 3 was involved in negotiations with a ma?or 2uropean carpet manufacturer to build a computeri7ed control system for a large weaving machine 3 proposed that we start at the design stage of the carpet pattern! $he intention was not to ma'e the artisan redundant+ but simply to give him a new tool! (ut this suggestion met with complete opposition from all parties concerned+ and the contract failed to come off!

;ompetition in the computer sector became increasingly tough! .ot only were the costs of hardware constantly rising+ software development costs were also growing! #y company with its thousand)odd employees faced growing capital shortages+ ma'ing it necessary to bring in new shareholders! $his led+ step by step+ to the company being completely ta'en over by 6iemens! $oday+ this leaves me free to devote more time to purely scientific problems+ and 3 still wor' on a free)lance basis for 6iemens "- #unich! 3 am currently involved in computer architecture+ and am particularly interested in the parallel operation of machines! (ac' in the 9,s 3 designed a machine for the meteorological office which today would be termed a %cellular computer%! 4ere+ too+ however+ 3 was guilty of trying to run before 3 could wal'! 8erhaps 3 can round off by mentioning a few of the ideas 3 have e/amined on paper without ever being able to turn them into reality! %$he ;omputing @niverse% is based on the idea that the whole cosmos is a 'ind of cellular computer+ something that some physicists are seriously considering today! $his theory has yet to be confirmed due to the lac' of e/perimental evidence! " paper on the sub?ect under the same title has also appeared in 2nglishA3B! 3 am sure the idea will gain considerable significance in the future and might help theoretical physics to solve a number of problems! "nother idea of mine was %$he 6elf)Ieproducing 6ystem%! 3 approached this concept differently to Mohn von .eumann+ who dealt with it using pure mathematics in the conte/t of cellular computers! "s an engineer 3 was more interested in setting up the conditions necessary for actual construction! 3n essence+ the idea envisages a tool factory which is capable of reproducing its own essential component parts! $his idea has met with complete opposition! 8eople have been reluctant to consider such a radical solution for all sorts of reasons! $oday traditional means of production are being automated step by step! Fe have yet to build the factory of the future! (ut one day these far) sighted developments will become reality+ leading to a complete revolution in the production process throughout the economy!

Quotations
>f one thing 3 am sure ) computer development has still a long way to go! Houng people have got plenty of wor' ahead of them yetD

Bibliography
(iographical (auer+ 5riedrich 0! %(etween Zuse and Iutishauser ) $he 2arly Development of Digital ;omputing in ;entral 2urope%+ in #etropolis+ .!+ M! 4owlett+ and -ian) ;arlo Iota! 198,! " 4istory of ;omputing in the $wentieth ;entury+ "cademic 8ress+ 3nc!+ .ew Hor'! pp! 9,9)9=*! ;eru77i+ 8aul 2! 1981! %$he 2arly ;omputers of Konrad Zuse+ 1939 to 19*9%+ Ann. Hist. Comp., &ol! 3+ .o! 3+ pp! =*1)=6=!

;7auderna+ Karl)4ein7! 19O9! %Konrad Zuse+ der Feg 7u seinem ;omputer Z3 (Konrad Zuse+ the 8ath to 4is Z3 ;omputer % Ieport 1=,+ Gesellschaft fr Mathematik und Datenverarbeitung, I! >ldenbourg+ #unich+ 1,9 pp! Iitchie+ David! 1986! $he ;omputer 8ioneers+ 6imon P 6huster+ 3nc!+ .ew Hor'+ ;hapter 3! 6chwart7+ 4! I! 1981! %$he 2arly Hears of ;omputing in 6wit7erland%+ Ann. Hist. Comp., &ol! 3+ .o! 1+ pp! 1=1)13=! 6later+ Iobert! 198O! 8ortraits in 6ilicon+ #3$ 8ress+ ;ambridge #"+ ;hapter 9! 6peiser+ "! 8! 198,! %$he Ielay ;omputer Z*%+ Ann. Hist. Comp., &ol! =+ .o! 3+ pp! =*=)=*9! Zemane'+ 4ein7! 1983! %Zuse+ Konrad% in Ialston+ "nthony+ and 2dwin D! Ieilly+ Mr! 1983! 2ncyclopedia of ;omputer 6cience and 2ngineering+ &an .ostrand Ieinhold ;o!+ .ew Hor'! Zuse+ Konrad! 19O,! Der ;omputer ) #ein 0ebenswer'+ &erlag #oderne 3ndustrie+ #unich! Zuse+ Konrad! 198,! %6ome Iemar's on the 4istory of ;omputing in -ermany%+ in #etropolis+ .!+ M! 4owlett+ and -ian);arlo Iota! 198,! " 4istory of ;omputing in the $wentieth ;entury+ "cademic 8ress+ 3nc!+ .ew Hor'! pp! 611) 6=O! Zuse+ Konrad! 198,! %3nstallation of the -erman ;omputer Z* in Zurich in 199,%+ Ann. Hist. Comp., &ol! =+ .o! 3+ pp! =39)=*1!

Footnotes
J1K -3omputer ,esi!n - .ast, .resent, 7uture-, )al% !iven b .rof+ 1onrad "use, in EundB5weden, 2nd Fctober 19=0 J2K 7urther details can be found in patent no+ 900 9'=, 1l+ '2 m, !roup 18 B @a 19&; entitled -@echanical >ela - and patent no+ 92' 100, 1l+ '2 m, !roup 18 B @a 19&; -@echanical >ela @emor J&K -<nternational Journal of )heoretical .h sics-, 21st edition, nos ;-0, from p+ 8=9, June 19=2 ;opyright M! "! .! 0ee+ 6eptember 199*!

The Z1
$he Z1 is today considered to be the first freely programmable computer of the world! 3t was completed in 1938 and financed completely from private funds! Konrad Zuse:s first computer+ built between 1936 and 1938+ was destroyed in the bombardment of (erlin in FF 33+ together with all construction plans! 3n 1986+ Konrad Zuse decided to reconstruct the Z1! $he Z1 contained all parts of a modern computer+ e! g! control unit+ memory+ micro seCuences+ floating point logic!

Z1 in the apartment of Konrad Zuse:s parents in 1936 Konrad Zuse constructed the Z1 in the apartment of his parents+ in fact+ he was allowed to use the living room for his construction! 3n 1936 Zuse Cuitted his ?ob in airplane construction to build the Z1! 4is parents were not enthusiastic+ but they did support him anyway they could!

$he rebuilt Z1 in the Deutsche $echni' #useum (erlin in 1989 3n 1986 Konrad Zuse decided to rebuilt the Z1! $he reason was that the Z1 contained almost all the important features of a modern computer! 3n 1986 he constructed thousands of elements of the Z1 again+ because the original Z1 was destroyed by allied airraids in 19*3! 3n 1989 the rebuilt Z1 was finished and can be visited in the Deutsche $echni' #useum (erlin)Kreu7berg!

0ogic structure of the Z1

&iew of the Z1

Data sheet

#ame of the machine <mplementation 7reHuenc #umeric unit

"1 )hin metal plates, wor%ed with fret saw 1 *ert$ 7loatin! point unit, 22 Bit word len!th

9vera!e calculation @ultiplication approG+ 8 seconds speed <nput Futput Word len!th #umber of rela s #umber of step switches @emor Wei!ht ,ecimal %e board, automatic binar codin! ,ecimal di!its 2' Bit mantissa, = bit eGponent, 1 si!n #o rela s, thousands of metal plates, approG+ 20,000 parts #one ;' cells L 22 Bit 9pproG+ 800 %!

.ower consumption 9pproG+ 1000 watts for the electric c cle motor 9rea of application (Gperimental model, no application, developed for scientific calculations #umber of machines sold 3ost in ,(@ 3omments 0 #o price )he "1 was not reliable+ 9 reconstruction is on displa in the ,eutsche )echni%museum Berlin+ )he metal plate construction was too compleG+ #eGt were the "2 and the "&+

zuse

cs.tu!berlin.de

The Z2
Konrad Zuse had bad luc' with his original Z1! $he Z1 did contain all components of a modern day computer+ however+ the Z1 was not reliable! 3ts mechanical construction was too comple/ and error prone! $herefore+ Konrad Zuse decided to construct the Z=! 4e wanted to find out whether the use of relays yielded better results! " .umeric unit (no picture available with 8,, relays did wor' well! $he Z= was complete in 1939! Zuse now decided to build the Z3+ a computer completely built with relays! 3t later became to be 'nown as the first fully functional programmable computer!

Data sheet
#ame of the machine <mplementation 7reHuenc #umeric unit "2 @emor C thin metal plates, wor%ed with fret saw; #umeric unitC rela s & *ert$ 7iG point unit, 1; bit word len!th

9vera!e calculation @ultiplication approG+ 8 seconds speed <nput Futput Word len!th #umber of rela s #umber of step switches @emor Wei!ht ,ecimal %e board, automatic binar conversion 7laps, binar 1; Bit, fiG point 200 M 1; cells L 1; Bit 9pproG+ 800 %!

.ower consumption 9pproG+ 1000 watts

9rea of application ,emonstration model, no applications #umber of machines sold 3ost in ,(@ 3omments 0 #o price )he "2 was a demonstration model for the rela techniHue, which was the basis for the "&+ )he "2 was destro ed b bombardment around 19'0+

zuse

cs.tu!berlin.de

The Z3
$oday it is undisputed that Konrad Zuse:s Z3 was the first fully functional+ program controlled (freely programmable computer of the world! $he #ar' 33+ the 2.3"; and the ;olossus followed 19*3 and later! $he Z3 was presented on #ay 1=+ 19*1 to an audience of scientists in (erlin! $he demonstration was a success! $he Z3 as the Z1 contained practically all features of modern day computers! $he Z3 was built with relays! $he Z3 did not have a ?ump instruction! Konrad Zuse+ however+ did 'now the ?ump instruction+ as he implemented it in the micro code for floating point calculations!

.o picture of the original Z3 e/ists! $he above picture was ta'en from a reconstruction made in early 196, by Zuse K-+ (ad 4ersfeld! $he reconstruction was made for the 196* 3nterdata industry fair in #unich! 3n 196O+ it was on display at the #ontreal 2/po+ where it received great attention! 3t is now owned by the Deutsche #useum in #unich!

)he picture above shows the "& on displa in the ,eutsche @useum in @uenchen+ )he ri!ht cupboard contains the rela s for the arithmetic unit+ 9lso the rela s on the top of the left cupboard belon! to the arithmetic unit+ )he rela s in the left cupboard with the li!ht color belon! to the memor 4;' words a 22 bits6+ Fn the bottom of the ri!ht cupboard the micro seHuencers can be seen, which are the heart of the control unit of the "&+ )he micro seHuencers are reali$ed with stepwise rela s+ )he are used to reduce complicated arithmetic operations to additions or subtractions+ )he input- and output devices can be seen on the left side+ )he decimal numbers are converted to binar floatin! point numbers and vice versa+ )he punch tape reader close to the input device ma%es the "& to a freel$ pro!rammable machine+

)he bloc% structure of the "&+ )here is a separation of the components of the machine, li%e the control unit, the memor , the arithmetic unit, and the input- and output devices+ )he two >e!ister >1 and >2 are short memories of 22 bits+ 9n arithmetic operation is performed as followsC >1 CN >1 I >2+ the contents of >e!ister >1 is added to the

contents of >e!ister >2 and the result is assi!ned to >1+ >2 is set to empt + )he "& was a cloc%ed machine of 8+& *ert$+

Data sheet
#ame of the machine "& <mplementation 7reHuenc #umeric unit ;00 rela s numeric unit, 1;00 rela s stora!e unit 8-10 *ert$ 7loatin! point unit, 1; steps for multiplication, & steps for addition, 1= steps division

9vera!e calculation @ultiplication & seconds, division & seconds, addition 0+0 seconds speed <nput Futput Word len!th #umber of rela s #umber of step switches @emor Wei!ht 9rea of application ,ecimal %e board with 20 di!its, automatic binar codin! With lamps, ' decimal di!its with decimal point 22 Bit, floatin! pointC mantissa, eGponent and si!n 2000 10 for micro code control of the floatin! point unit 1'00 rela s, ;' words L 22 Bit 9pproG+ 1000 %! Win! construction

.ower consumption 9pproG+ '000 watts

#umber of machines 0 sold 3ost in ,(@ 3omments none )he "& was destro ed throu!h bombardment in 19''+ 9 reconstruction is on displa in the ,eutsche @useum in @unich+ Details of the first (inary For'ing ;omputer Z3 ;ontributions of Konrad Zuse to the #odern ;omputer 4ow to ma'e the computer Z3 to an universal computerG

atent of the Z3
O 1onrad "uses .atent "&91 for the @achine "& from 19'1 has been proposed for the 2#(53F .ro!ram @emor for the World at 9u!ust &1, 2000+ Please look here, too. zuse@cs.tu-berlin.de

Konrad Zuses Z3 in Detail

Konrad Zuse built the machine Z3 from 1939 to 19*1 in the #ethfesselstraQe O in (erlin)Kreu7berg with some friends and a small support by the government!

Fith the Z3 Konrad Zuse wanted to show+ that it is possible to build a reliable wor'ing machine for very complicated arithmetic calculations+ which is freely programmable and is based on a binary floating point number and switching system! 5or reliability reasons he used relays for the entire machine!

icture 1! $he design of the Z3 by Konrad Zuse in 1939! $here does not e/ist a photo of the Z3 because all documents and photos were destroyed by allied airraids during the war! Konrad Zuse rebuilt the Z3 in 196,161 in his Zuse K- in order to show the patent ?ustice and the world the performance of this machine and to demonstrate this machine for advertising purposes!

icture 2! 0eft< $he rebuilt computer Z3 in 196* with Konrad Zuse! $he memory is on the left side ($he logo Z of the Zuse K- can be seen and the arithmetic unit with the stepwise relays are on the right side! 0eft on the front the console with the punch tape reader can be seen! Iight< $he diary of Konrad Zuse at #ay 1=+ 19*1< Konrad Zuse presented the wor'ing Z3 to scientists in (erlin! $oday+ it is undisputed+ that the Z3 was the first freely programmable+ based on a binary floating number and switching system+ really wor'ing computer of the

world! $he Z3 did not store the program in the memory+ but it contained in 19*1 almost all the components of a modern computer as reCuired by Mohn von .eumann et al! in 19*6 1(@IK*61! >ne e/ception is the ability to store the program in the memory together with the data! Konrad Zuse did not implement this feature in the Z3 because the memory of 6* words was too small for this! 4e wanted to calculate thousands of instructions in a meaningful order! $he machine he constructed should be freely programmable! 5or this reason+ he only used the memory for values or numbers!

icture 3! $he bloc' structure of the Z3 and the rebuilt machine Z3! $he bloc' structure of the Z3 is very similar to a modern computer! $he Z3 disposed of separate units+ li'e punch tape reader+ control unit+ floating point arithmetic unit and input) 1 output devices! Fith respect to this theme+ (ur's et al! 1(@IK*61 wrote as late as in 19*6< "n as much as the completed device #ill be a general!purpose computing machine it should contain main organs relating to arithmetic, memor$!storage, control and connection #ith the human operator. "t is intended that the machine be full$ automatic in character, i.e. independent of the human operator after the computation starts. 3t is important to notice+ that the Z3 contained organs li'e an arithmetic unit+ memory)storage+ control and connection with the human operator! $he machine Z3 contained a special operating modus! Fith the instruction %u the input device was activated and the program was stopped! $he human operator could chec'+ among others+ the Iegisters I1 and I= of the arithmetic unit and he could ma'e intermediate calculations using the Iegisters I1 and I=! $hen he could proceed the program! $his is a very early interactive communication with the machine! 0et us consider the discussion of floating point numbers in the paper of (ur's et al! 1(@IK*61< "t #ould therefore seem to us not at all clear #hether the modest advantages of a floating binar$ point offset the loss of memor$ capacit$ and the increased comple&it$ of the arithmetic and control circuits. 3n 1.2@#*91 the use of the binary system for computers is proposed! 3t is very important to notice+ that floating point numbers were discussed as late as in 19*6 by (ur's et al! and they were not really convinced that this is a good concept! Konrad Zuse described in 193* the concept of a floating processor and implemented in 1936 such a floating point processor! $his is ten years before (ur's et al! 1(@IK*61 postulated it as a concept for modern computers (not a built machine ! "s shown above and will be shown below+ Konrad Zuse also implemented a powerful arithmetic e/ception unit! 0et us consider the logical concepts of the Z3 in detail! arallel Machine! $he Z3 was a parallel wor'ing machine! $he == bits from the memory to the Iegister I1 and vice versa were moved in one step (cycle ! $he same holds for the binary arithmetic unit+ where+ among others+ two parallel adders (e/ponent+ mantissa were used! Memory! $he memory of the Z3 consisted of 6* words R == bits! 2ach word was directly addressable by the instructions 8r 7 or 8s 7+ where 7 is the address in the range< 6* 7 1! 5or each bit a relay was needed! Floating oint "umbers! Konrad Zuse used a semi)logarithm representation of numbers! 0et us ta'e the number 1,,! 3n the binary system this number can be written as< 1,, S 1/=6T 1/=9 T ,/=* T ,/=3T 1/== T ,/=1 T ,/=,S 6* T 3= T *! $he number 1,, can be created by the power of = related to the numbers< = 6+ =9 and == S 6* T 3= T *! 3n the binary representation we use the 1 or , in order to represent the number! ($hese are e/actly the factors 1 and , before the

multiplication sign! 3n the binary digit system the number 1,, can be written as< 11,,1,,! $his is a binary number without a comma! $he number 1,,+9 can be represented as< 1,,+9 S 1/=6T 1/=9 T ,/=* T ,/=3T 1/== T ,/=1 T ,/=, T 1/=)1S 6* T 3= T * T ,+9! 3n the binary system we write this as< 11,,1,,+1! $he most right 1 of the comma is =)1S ,+9! $hese are binary numbers with a comma+ we also say fi/ed point numbers! $o represent numbers in the , or 1 notation has big advantages for computers! $his has not changed till today! 6ince only two states or two numbers are considered+ we can use pair circuits to store numbers and to operate with them! 3n 1939 relays were such building bloc's! 4owever+ the above representation of numbers has a disadvantage! Konrad Zuse used == bits for his number+ but with == bits we can only represent small numbers in a range ===)1! 5or this reason Konrad Zuse used the binary floating point representation (semi)logarithmic representation for the numbers! 0et us consider the number 1,, again! 1,, S 1/=6T 1/=9 T ,/=* T ,/=3T 1/== T ,/=1 T ,/=,S 6* T 3= T *! Konrad Zuse divided the number in an e/ponent and a mantissa! "s the e/ponent he used the power of two of the highest e/ponent+ in our case 6! $his number was converted into the binary system and we got 11,! "s the mantissa we used the binary number 11,,1,,! $he new number U a floating point number U is now< ,,,,,11, 11,,1,,,,,,,,,,! $he first digit of the mantissa always is 1! 5or this reason the first 1 is left out and the mantissa is 1,,1,, instead of 11,,1,,! Doing this+ Konrad Zuse did win one digit for a higher accuracy of his numbers! 3nstead of 1* bits he had 19 bits for the mantissa! $he number 1,, is now< ,,,,,11, 1,,1,,,,,,,,,,! $he number 1,,!9 in the binary system is< 11,,1,,+1! $he floating point number is< ,,,,,11, 11,,1,,1,,,,,,,! 3n the Z3 the number is< ,,,,,11, 1,,1,,1,,,,,,,! @sing this concept+ Konrad Zuse was able to handle very big and very small numbers in a range of appro/imately =)63 to =63!

icture #! 5loating point numbers of the Z3! &Z means the sign for the mantissa+ 2O to 21 are the bits of the e/ponent and the numbers 1* to 1 describe the 1* bits of the mantissa! $he picture is from the Konrad Zuse #ultimedia 6how 1Z@62981! $nstructions! $he Z3 disposed of the following instruction set and cycles! Fe introduce the following notation< I1 and I= are Iegisters R == bits! $he notation< I1 <S I1 T I= means< $he contents of Iegister I1 is added to the contents of Iegister I= and the result is stored in Iegister I1! Iegister I= is set to empty after arithmetic the arithmetic operation!

$nstruction Function %ycles 8r 7 $o read the contents of the memory cell 7 into the Iegisters I1 or I=! 1 8s 7 $o write the contents of Iegister I1 in the memory cell 7! ,)1 0s1 "ddition< I1 <S I1 T I= 3 0s= 6ubtraction< I1 <S I1 T I= *)9 0m #ultiplication< I1 <S I1 T I= 16 0i Division< I1 <S I1 T I= 18 0w 6Cuare root< I1 <S 6VI(I1 =, 0u $o call the input device for decimal numbers! 9)*1 0d $o call the output device for decimal numbers! 9)*1 $he two basic arithmetic operations of the Z3 are the addition and substraction of the e/ponent and signs! "ddition and subtraction reCuire more than one cycle because+ in the case of floating point numbers+ care has to be ta'en to set the si7e of the e/ponent of both arguments to the same value! $his reCuires some e/tra comparisons and shifting! $he number of cycles needed for the 0u and 0d

instructions is variable+ because it depends on the e/ponent of the argument! " number can be stored in memory (8s in 7ero cycles when the result of the last arithmetic operation can be redirected to the desired memory address! 3n this case+ the cycle needed for the store instruction overlaps the last cycle of the arithmetical operations! 3t is a little bit surprising+ that the conditional branch is missing! Konrad Zuse described in his papers from 1936 till 19*9 a lot of scientific and numerical problems+ which he wanted to solve with his machines! 5or this calculations he did not need the conditional branch! "t least in 19**+ he mentioned the conditional branch indirectly in the conte/t of free programs 1Z@62*91+ p16! Konrad Zuse introduced 'ree (rograms )'reie *echenpl+ne,< $he definition is< -ei den freien *echenpl+nen beeinflussen die eigentlichen .ariablen den Ablauf der *echnung. /un+chst k0nnen die bei den 1uasistarren *echenpl+nen besprochenen (lanvariablen #ie variable 2perationszeichen, 3trukturzeichen us#. 'unktionen der eigentlichen .ariablen sein. 4s kann z.-. die Art der 2peration in einer *echengleichung erst errechnet #erden. $ranslation< 5ith the free programs the actual variables influence the e&ecution of the calculation. 'irst of all the variables, like operation signs, structure signs, as defined #ith the 1uasi rigid )1uasi starr, programs, etc., can be functions of the actual variable. "t is, for e&ample, possible to calculate the t$pe of operation in a calculation e1uation. 4owever+ all the other machines at this time did not have the conditional branch! &rithmetic 'nit and %arry &head! $he arithmetic unit of the Z3 is Konrad Zuses masterstro'e! 4e reduced all the arithmetic operations to addition or substraction! 5or the reali7ation of the addition (subtraction is an addition of the complement of one number and the number Konrad Zuse implemented a special switch because he wanted to avoid too many cycles for the addition of two binary floating point numbers! @sing the special switch+ he could reduce the addition from at least 1* cycles with a serial addition down to three cycles with a parallel addition! "lthough there were only five instructions (0s1+ 0s=+ 0m+0i+ and 0w for arithmetic operations+ some more operations were implemented which could be called from the input device! 4e also simplified the e/ecution of the arithmetic operations with micro)seCuences controlled by stepwise relays!

icture (! 0eft< $he arithmetic unit of the Z3! 3t could be used from the program but also for intermediate operations from the input device! Iight< " relay of the Z3!

Konrad Zuse used a self developed carr$ look!ahead circuit of relays for the addition of floating point numbers! Fith this concept he could add two floating point numbers in three cycles! "ssuming the numbers to be added were still in the memory+ then he needed five cycles+ two for the instructions 8r and three for the instruction 0s1! Fith the first cycle+ the first operand was transferred to Iegister I1 and with the second cycle+ the second operand was transferred to Iegister I=! $hen+ the e/ponent and mantissa were added and the result was stored in Iegister I1! "fter this Iegister I= is set empty! Fe write this as< 0s1< I1 <S I1 T I=! Konrad Zuse used additional internal registers which are not shown on the picture above! $hese registers were two bits longer than the mantissa in order to get a higher accuracy of his results! $he multiplication algorithm of the Z3 is li'e the one used for decimal multiplication by hand+ that is+ it is based on repeated additions of the multiplicator according to the individual didgits of the multiplicand! $he division algorithm is similar to the multiplication one+ but the repeated substraction is used! $he instruction algorithm behind the instruction 0w is a ?ewel of the Z3! $he main idea is to reduce the sCuare root operation to a division (6ee also the #achine Z* ! &rithmetic )*ception +andling! $he Z3 disposed of an arithmetic e/ception handling! Konrad Zuse implemented the e/ception handling because he wanted to be sure that the Z3 calculates the numbers correctly even when the Z3 is wor'ing without a supervisor! $he Z3 recogni7ed the following operations<

@nderflow of the range of numbers is< ,! Fverflow of the ran!e of numbers isC + 7or the calculation with 0 holdsC 0 I G N G, 0 P G N 0, G B 0 N , 0 B 0 N M 7or the calculation with holdsC I G N , P G N , 1 B N 0+ 9ll operations with M have the result M+ 0B0 N undefined - N undefined B N undefined 0 G N undefined

$he undefined state was shown on the output device on the left side with small lights! 5or the numbers , and Konrad Zuse used special bit codes in the e/ponent! "n e/ponent of U6* is the decimal ,! "n e/ponent of U63 or T63 represents ! $he Z3 calculates always correctly+ if an argument is , or and the other argument is in the allowed range!

icture ,! 0eft< $he input) and output devices of the Z3! "t the front the numbers could be put in by buttons! $here were four buttons for the mantissa and 1O buttons for the e/ponent (from )8 to T8 ! $he results were shown by lamps! Iight< $he output device of the Z3 with the lamps for the decimal numbers (right and the arithmetic e/ception handling on the left side! $he binary floating point numbers were converted to decimal floating numbers! 5or this conversions he needed between 9 and *1 cycles depending on the e/ponent! $he mantissa consisted of four decimal digits (five digits for the 1 and the e/ponent was between U8 and T8! $he biggest decimal number which could be shown was 1999921,8! %loc-ed Maschine . %loc- Fre/uency! $he Z3 is a cloc'ed machine! Konrad Zuse used this principle to synchroni7e the different components of the machine! 3n order to do this he implemented a special impuls generator with a drum!

icture 0! $he impuls generator for the Z3! $he speed of the capstan could be controlled in steps! 3t is an electric motor which drives a shaft+ upon which are attached a number of arms (or protruding levers + where each arm is used to close a switch+ and the angular separation between the arms caused different switches to be closed at different times+ thereby allowing the system to control the flow of data between the various units! $he impuls generator stepwise provides the different relay groups with electrical power! $he cloc' freCuency was around 9!3 4ert7 depending on the Cuality of the telephone relays+ so the faster the cloc' then the faster the machine! 3n tal's with Io?as 1I>M"98a1 and me Konrad Zuse mentioned that a multiplication of two floating point numbers too' about three seconds! $he Z3 needed 16 cycles for a multiplication! 5or this reason the cloc' freCuency is 16 1 3 9!3 4ert7! 3n order to avoid spar'ing of the relay contacts when switching them+ he used the drum to drop off the electricity at the switching time! $his principle avoided material rust and guaranteed a long functionality of the relay contacts! Micro 1e/uencer and ipelining! $he heart of the control unit of the Z3 are the micro seCuencers! 2very cycle in the Z3 was divided in five steps 3 to &!

icture 2! $he e/ecution pipeline of the Z3! $he steps 3& and & are used to transfer information from one part of the Z3 to another one+ for e/ample the contents of a register to a memory cell! During the steps 3 33 and 333 an addition or subtraction in both parts of the arithmetic unit is e/ecuted! $his is the e/ecution phase of an instruction! " typical instruction ta'es the arguments of the operation+ e/ecutes an operation and writes the result bac'! Konrad Zuse considered it as very important to save e/ecution time+ that he e/ecuted the instruction in an overlapping way (6ee the picture ! 3t is 'ind of a pipelining principle! 3t is not well 'nown+ that Konrad Zuse in 19*9 applied for a patent for a pipelining computer in 19*9!

icture 3! $he first pipeline computer of the world! Konrad Zuse applied for a patent for it at Mune 3,+ 19*9 and got it at December 6+ 196=!! "t Mune 3,+ 19*9 Konrad Zuse applied for a patent of the first pipeline computer of the world and got it as late as on December 6+ 196=! $he title of the patent is< *echenmaschine zur Durchfhrung arithmetischer *echenoperationen )z.-. Multiplikationen. $ranslation< Calculator for the e&ecution of arithmetic operations, for e&ample multiplication,. 3t was a machine consisting of eight independent arithmetic units which could e/ecute partial arithmetic operations on certain data! Fith this machine it was possible to e/ecute arithmetic operations for a large set of data! Fe now are coming bac' to the micro)seCuencers of the Z3!

icture 14! 0eft< $he micro)seCuencers of the Z3 reali7ed with stepwise relays! Iight< " stepwise relay of the Z3! Fith stepwise relays Konrad Zuse implemented so)called micro seCuencers! $he seCuencers were part of the control unit and were used to enable a seCuence of repeated micro)instructions! 5or e/ample+ the instruction 0m is reali7ed by a seCuence of additions! 3n the Z3 we can find micro)seCuences for the instructions 0w+ 0m+ 0i+ 0u and 0d! 3t is not micro)programming+ but it is a hardware wired micro)seCuencing! &n )*ample rogram 5 olynomial6! Fe now present an e/ample program of the Z3! Fe want to calculate the polynomial< ((a*/ T a3 / T a= / T a1! $he

numbers for a*+a3+a= and a1 are already stored in the memory cells *+ 3+ =+ 1+ which had to be done by the input device! $he number for / is reCuired by the input device with the instruction 0u!
Lu To call the input device for the variable x. Ps 5 To store variable x in memory cell 5. Pr 4 Load a1 in Register R1. Pr 5 Load x in Register R2. Lm ultiply! R1 !" R1 x R2. Pr # Load a# in Register R2 Ls1 $dd! R1 !" R1 % R2. Pr 5 Load x in R2. Lm ultiply! R1 !" R1 x R2. Pr 2 Load a2 in Register R2. Ls1 $dd! R1 !" R1 % R2. Pr 5 Load x in Register R2. Lm ultiply! R1 !" R1 x R2. Ppr 1 Load a1 in Register R2. Ls1 $dd! R1 !" R1 % R2. Ld &ho's the result as a decimal number.

"fter the e/ecution of the program the Z3 stopped and showed the result via the instruction 0d! Minimal Design rinciple and 'ni7ersal %omputer 5Turing6! Konrad Zuse followed a minimal design principle with the construction of his computers! 4e tried to build a powerful computing machine with minimal effort and costs! 4e had no other way because his parents were not rich and he had not much money! 5or Konrad Zuse+ the Z3 was the last machine in a series of trial machines (Z1)Z3 in order to build a machine which was able to solve the mathematical problems of engineers and scientists! "lthough he was convinced+ that his machine could calculate all mathematical problems+ he could not prove it! 4e tried to show this with many e/amples and chess! 3n 19*1 he said to friends+ that his machine can play chess! 4owever+ he had the right feeling+ that his machine could calculate everything! 5rom 19*1 till his death in 1999 he did not 'now+ that his computer Z3 was an universal computer in the sense of $uring! 3n 1998 Iaul Io?as 1I>M"98a1 formulated the proof+ that the Z3 is an universal computer!

The 11
Data sheet
#ame of the machine 51 <mplementation 7reHuenc #umeric unit 9vera!e calculation speed (lectromechanical 1-8 *ert$ 7iG point @ultiplication approG+ 8 5ec+

<nput Futput Word len!th #umber of rela s #umber of step switches @emor .ower consumption Wei!ht 9rea of application

,ecimal %e board 9rra of lamps 12 Bit, fiG point ;00 9pproG+ 10 for hard-wired pro!ram control M M M 5pecial application for win! calculations

#umber of machines 0 sold 3ost in ,(@ 3omments zuse #one *ard-wired pro!ram with step switches+ )he 51 was used from 19'2 to 19'' at *enschel-7lu!$eu!wer%e+

cs.tu!berlin.de

The 12

Data sheet
#ame of the machine <mplementation 7reHuenc #umeric unit 52 (lectromechanical 1-8 *ert$ 7iG point

9vera!e calculation @ultiplication approG+ 8 sec+ speed

<nput Futput Word len!th #umber of rela s #umber of step switches @emor Wei!ht #umber of machines sold 3ost in ,(@ 3omments

,ecimal %e board 9rra of lamps 12 Bit, fiG point ;00 9pproG+ 10 for hard-wired pro!ram control M M 0 #one *ard-wired pro!ram with step switches+ 3onnected to measurement dials with analo! to di!ital conversion+ )he first process control computer+

.ower consumption M 9rea of application 5pecial application for win! calculations

zuse

cs.tu!berlin.de

The Z#
$he Z*+ the second general purpose computer+ was completed in 19**! $he Z* was reassembled in the years following 19*9! 8unched tape readers were then added! 5rom Muly 11+ 199,+ this configuration was used for five years at the 3nstitute of "pplied #athematics at 2$4 Zurich! 3n 1991+ the Z* was the only operational computer in 2urope! 3n 199*+ the Z* was transferred to the "nstitut 'ranco!Allemand des *echerches de 3t. %ouis in 5rance+ where it was in use until 1999! $oday+ the Z* is on display in the Deutsche #useum in #unich!

$he Z*!

#emory unit of the Z*! $his picture was 'indly made available by Dr! Kistermann! 3t was ta'en at an e/hibition at 2$4 Zurich in 1981!

Z# 8 lanfertigungsger9t
$he Z* had a (lanfertigungsger+t! 3t was a unit in order to produce punch tapes as a program with instructions for the Z* in a very easy way! 5or this reason it was possible to learn the programming of the Z* in at least three hours! $he 8lanfertigungsgerEt already was a part of the Z* in 19*9!

$he Z* (lanfertigungsger+t! 3t was possible to use symbolic memory cells+ instructions and symbolic arithmetic operations for the creation of a program! 3t also was possible to copy programs and to ma'e corrections!

erformance of the Z#
5rom 199,)1999 the Z* processed appro/! 1,, different pro?ects! $he Z* e/ecuted appro/! 1,,+,,, instructions! 5or e/tern pro?ects the costs were one Iappen (,!,1 ;45 per instruction!

$nstruction 1et of the Z#

$he Z* had a large instruction set in order to calculate complicated scientific programs! $he instruction set of the Z* was formulated in 19*=! $he Z* had a performance of 1,,, instructions per hour! <nstruction " nC 7or eGample " 1O+ <t reads the contents of memor cell 10 into >e!ister I1+ <f >e!ister I1 is occupied, the contents is loaded into >e!ister I=+ <nstruction 6 nC 7or eGample 6 18+ <t writes the contents of >e!isters I1 into the memor cell 1=+ 9s ar!uments for the arithmetic operations the >e!isters I1 and I= were used+ 7or monadic operations the >e!ister I1 is used and the result occurs in >e!ister I1, too+ 7or d adic operations both >e!isters I1 and I= are used and the result occurs in >e!ister I1+ )he contents of >e!ister I= is deleted+ @onadic operations areC T ) W 1 #"M (#a/imum #in+ , adic operations areC /X= 6VI(/ 11/ 3/3 sgn(/ /YZ /Y= /Y()1 /Y1, /Y3 /Y113 /Y119 /Y11O /Ypi /Y11pi+ <nstructions for comparison 4GN0, GQN0, <G< N infinit 6 are testin! the number in >e!ister I1 and set >e!ister I1 to I1 if the condition is fulfilled, if not, then the contents of >e!ister I1 is -1+ )his instruction was planned in 19'2 but not reali$ed because of the war+ )he conditional branch 68I was a special reHuirement b the ()*+ )he instruction 68I can be used after a test instruction+ <t s%ips the punch tape to the instruction 6$, if the contents of >e!ister I1 is I1+ <f the contents of the re!ister is -1 then there is no impact+ <nstruction @8C )he "' had two punch tape readers+ <n the ori!inal version up to ; such readers were planned+ )he instruction @8 switches from the main punch tape reader 4906 to the sub punch tape reader 49t16+ )he instruction 53. causes a switch bac% to 90+ <nstructions for FutputC )[ D 0 etc+C )hese instructions cause the conversion of binar numbers to decimal numbers with li!hts, @(>3(,(5 t pewriter of the punchtape+ <nstructions for <nputC \) "t1 etc+C <t allows to read numbers from the punch tape+ 0i'e the Z3+ the Z* has an arithmetic e/ception handling! 3f there are numbers outside the range of 1,X)=, \ / \ 1,X=, then the machine gives the range where the result is+ for e/ample< Very big + very big = very big. Very big - very big = undefined. ! = undefined. 3f an undefined value is combined with a number+ the result is again undefined! @sing this method it can be avoided+ that the Z* calculates wrong numbers when it is wor'ing without attendance! $his was often the case at the 2$4!

Data sheet
#ame of the machine "'

<mplementation 7reHuenc #umeric unit

9pproG+ 2200 rela s #umeric unit, mechanical memor unit &0 *ert$ 7loatin! point unit, &2 Bit Word len!th, 28-&0 Fperations per sec+

9vera!e 9pproG+ 11 @ultiplications per 5ec+ calculation speed <nput Futput Word len!th #umber of step switches @emor .ower consumption Wei!ht 9rea of application #umber of machines sold 3ost 3omments ,ecimal %e board or punch tape @ercedes t pe writer &2 Bit, floatin! point, 0 Bit eGponent, 1 si!n, 2' Bit mantissa 9pproG+ 21 4micro seHuences6 @echanical memor , metal plates, ;' words L &2 Bit, 800 words planned 9pproG+ '000 watts 9pproG+ 1000 %! 1980-1988 ()* "urich 1 rented to ()* "urich '0,000 3*7 )he "' was similar to the "&, however improved in terms of speed+ <t also implemented unconditional branchin!+ )he "' was wor%in! da and ni!ht at ()* "urich+ )he ori!inal machine is on displa in the ,eutsche @useum in @unich+

#umber of rela s 2200

)he computer "' at the ()*-"/rich - 9 report b 9+ 5peiser zuse cs.tu!berlin.de

Zuse &pparatebau Berlin 513#4813#(6 and Zuse K: 513#3813,36

$ntroduction

0ogo of the Zuse K$his is a short story of the two companies Zuse "pparatebau (erlin (19*1) 19*9 and the Zuse K- (19*9)1969 ! Konrad Zuse had a vision! 4e wanted to build computers in order to release engineers from their hard wor' of calculating thousands of numbers! 3n 19*3 he formulated this vision and calculated the price of one word for a memory of thin metal sheets up to 9 I#! $he si7e of such a memory should be one thousand words a 3= bits! $he ;omputer Z* was planned as the prototype of a serial machine for engineers! 4owever+ the war destroyed Konrad Zuses visions!

Zuse &pparatebau Berlin 513#4813#(6

$he /use Apparatebau in (erlin were founded in (erlin in 19*1 in the #ethfesselstraQe O and 1,! 3n 19*9 when the company was destroyed by allied airraids+ the company had appro/! =, employees! $he plot of land in the #ethfesselstraQe O is till today a bombed site!

0eft< #ethfesselstraQe 1, in (erlin (ca! 199, ! 3n a house on this plot of land the Z3 and Z* were constructed! $oday+ there is a vinyard! Iight< Konrad Zuse at the entrance of the #ethfesselstraQe O in 1989+ where he built the famous Z3 and started the development of the Z*!

Zuse &pparatebau Berlin 513#4813#(6 and Zuse K: 513#3813,36

%omputers from 133, to 13#(
3n the #ethfesselstraQe O and 1, and from 19** in the >ranienstraQe 6+ Konrad Zuse built the following computers< "1 - thin metal sheets 4.rivatel financed6 "2 - rela s and thin metal sheets 4.rivatel financed6 "& - rela s 45upport b the !overnment6, 51 - rela s 45upport b the !overnment6, 52 - rela s 45upport b the !overnment6, "' - rela s, memor consistin! of thin plates 45upport b the !overnment6+ 3n 19*9 the Zuse "pparatebau were destroyed by allied airraids and only the #achine Z* survived the attac's by the allied airraids!

(randenburger $or ((randenburg -ate in 19*9! Konrad Zuse fled from (erlin in #arch 19*9 and arrived in 4interstein ("llgEu+ (avaria in "pril 19*9! $here+ Konrad Zuse met Fernher von (raun in the 4aus 3ngeborg! 3t was the first and last time in his life that he met Fernher von (raun! 4e left the group of Fernher von (raun and went to 4interstein and hided parts of the Z* in a barn of the Alpenhotel 3teinadler! $he 5rench and "merican troops loo'ed for the Z*+ but they did not find it!

3n this barn of the 4otel 6teinadler in 4interstein ("llgEu+ (avaria the Z* was hidden! "t this time the Z* was the only one computer in 2urope!

5rom 19*9 till 19*O it was almost impossible to restore the not finished and slightly damaged Z*! "t this time+ the Z* was the only one computer in 2urope! Konrad Zuse used tins from the allies to repair parts of the mechanical memory of the Z*! $he first problem was to survive the years after the war! 3n order to get some food+ Konrad Zuse made woodcuts and sold them to the farmers and the "merican troops! $he ne/t picture (D3. "* shows a woodcut by Konrad Zuse+ which shows 4interstein ("llgEu+ (avaria ! $he ;omputer Z* was hidden close to the church!

" woodcut of Konrad Zuse of 4interstein ("llgEu ! 6he image above is linked to an enlargement )789 :-,! $he following picture is a color woodcut of the ZipfelsfElle (Zipfel waterfall in 4interstein (D3. "3 by Konrad Zuse! 4e used three separate wood plates+ one for the yellow+ one for blue and one for red color! 2ach wood plate was pressed on the same paper!

$he waterfall ZipfelsfElle close to 4interstein! 3t is a three color woodcut (*, cm / 6, cm by Konrad Zuse (19*9 ! 3n a paper from 19*O Konrad Zuse wrote the following statement related to computers in the future< Die in diese" #usa""en$ang auftretenden %rob&e"e sind so u"fangreic$' da( eine )eneration von *issensc$aft&ern' +ec$ni,ern und *irtsc$aft&ern erforder&ic$ sein wird' u" sie ersc$-pfend .u bearbeiten.

$ranslation< +$e prob&e"s in t$is context are so extensive' t$at a generation of scientists' engineers and econo"ists wi&& be necessary' to process t$e" sufficient&y. Fith problems Konrad Zuse meant the introduction of computers in science and companies! 4is plan was to build logistic computers! $hese computers were e/tended algebraic computers+ li'e the Z*+ in order to solve problems of the engineers! $hese problems should be formulated in the 8lan'al'Jl+ which today is accepted as the first programming language of the world! "lready in 19*3 he wrote+ that from his view the problems of algebraic computers are solved!

$he wor'shop of Konrad Zuse in 4opferau ("llgEu in 19*O+ where he installed the Z*! 3n 19*8 the Z* was build up in a former stable for horses in 4opferau ("llgEu+ (avaria ! 6ome calculations could be done+ but it was very difficult to 'eep the machine wor'ing! 2lectrical power was only available for some hours a day and mostly it was not sufficient for the Z*! 3n 19*8 8rof! 6tiefel from the 2$4 (2idgenLssische $echnische 4ochschule ZJrich visited Konrad Zuse in 4opferau and wanted to see the Z*! $ill today it is not clear from whom he heard about this #achine Z* in 4opferau!

$he input and output device of the Z* in 19*O in 4opferau! 8rof! 6tiefel gave Konrad Zuse a differential eCuation as a problem to solve! Konrad Zuse formulated the program for the Z*+ created a punch tape and the Z* began to wor'! $he result was correct! 0ater+ a contract was made between the 2$4 and the Zuse K-+ although 8rof! 6tiefel visited the machines 2.3";+ #"IK 3 and #"IK 33 in the @6"! $he ma?or reasons to lease the Z* for 9 years were< <t was the onl one available computer in (urope+ <t was a reliable rela computer althou!h there was a bad feelin! about the mechanical memor of the "'+ )he reliabilit of rela s was well %nown+ *owever, a memor such as of the "' nobod had seen at an time before+ )he .lanferti!un!teil, which was a feature to write pro!rams in a ver eas wa + 1onrad "use promised to ma%e some eGtensions with the "'+ )he 25 computers were not available+ 3n order to fulfil the contract with the 2$4+ Konrad Zuse founded the Zuse K-!

Zuse K: 513#3813,36
3n 19*9 Konrad Zuse founded the Zuse K- with five employees in .eu'irchen (Kreis 4Jnfeld+ 1=, 'm north of 5ran'furt ! $he building in .eu'irchen (Kreis 4Jnfeld was formerly a trading post!

3n this building the first computer company in -ermany was founded by Konrad Zuse! 3t was an old trading post! $here the Z* was restored and the Z9+ Z11 and Z== were constructed there! $he first tas' of the Zuse K- in 19*9 was to restore the ;omputer Z*+ which survived the air attac's of the allies in (erlin and on the way from (erlin to 4interstein ("llgEu ! 3n 19*919, the Z* was e/tended by the following features and delivered to ZJrich on Muly 11+ 199,< 3onditional branch+ <nstructions for printin! the results on a @ercedes t pewriter+ 5torin! numbers on the punch tape in order to transfer them into the memor of the "'+ >estorin! the furniture+ 5eparation of the service unit and the rela cupboards+

$he restored Z* in .eu'irchen Kreis 4Jnfeld in 199,! $he Z* consisted of ca! ten relay cupboards with ==,, relays! $he memory was a mechanical one with 6* words a 3= bits! $he processor was a very powerful floating processor! 6he image above is linked to an enlargement );89 :-, ! $he Z* was a big machine with ==,, relays and a memory of 6* words ] 3= bits consisting of metal sheets!

Zuse wor'ing at the Z* (199, ! Iestoring the Z* charged the Zuse K- with appro/! 6,+,,, D2#+ but the 2$4 ZJrich paid for the Z* an amount *,+,,, ;45! Fith this money it was possible to found the Zuse K- and to restore the Z*! $he Z* was a great success for the 2$4 and the Zuse K-! $he speed of the Z* was about 1,,, instructions per hour! 3n 199,+ the 0eit7 ;ompany in Fet7lar ordered a big relay computer+ the Z9! $he picture shows the employees of the Zuse K- in 199=+ who built the Z9! $he Z9 also was a great success for the Zuse K-! $he Z9 was sold for 3,,+,,, D2#!

$he Z9 was an e/tended version of the Z*! Konrad Zuse used modern relays in order to overcome the bad reliability of tubes! $he Z9 was the first commerial computer in 2urope! 4owever+ the Z9 was the only one big mandate+ that the Zuse K- got between 19*9 and 1999! "fter the second world war the situation in -ermany and 2urope was very difficult! $he companies had no money to buy computers! -ermany was destroyed up to 6,^! $he capacity of the -erman economy was less than =,^ compared to 1939! 5or this reason+ Konrad Zuse tried to ma'e some business with @6 companies! 4e successfully made some business with the Iemington Iand ;orporation! $ill 1999+ in -ermany was no support by the government for buying or building computers in a company! "n e/ception was the construction of the -1 in -Lttingen+ which was a research computer! 5rom 1999 the D5- (Deutsche 5orschungsgemeinschaft gave money to install computers in the universities! $he computer Z11+ a relay computer+ was sold from 1999 to -erman companies+ mostly to the optical industry and universities! 3n 199O the universities started to order computers of the type Z==! $his was a

very fle/ible and cheap computer based on tubes with a drum of >K words! "fter 199O many other computers followed+ for that see Konrad Zuse computers! 2arly in 1999 Konrad Zuse began with the development of the -raphomat Z6*! 3t was a drawing machine with an accuracy of ,!,9 mm! $his machine was controlled by a program created by the ;omputers Z==+ Z=3+ Z=9+ or Z31!

$he Zuse -raphomat 9, in 196*! 6he image above is linked to an enlargement )<99 :-,! 5rom 19*9 to 1969+ the Zuse K- produced more than =9, computers with a value of 1,, #illion D#! "lthough in 196* the Zuse K- had orders of more than =9 #illion D#+ it was for Konrad Zuse impossible to 'eep the Zuse K- as his own company! $he ne/t picture shows the Zuse K- (1=,, employees in 196* in (ad 4ersfeld!

$he Zuse K- in (ad 4ersfeld in 196*! 6he image above is linked to an enlargement )=9 :-,! "fter 1961 the Zuse K- got more or less in financial trouble! $here were many reasons for that< )here was no financial support of the computin! industr b the !overnment+ )here were an increasin! competition b <B@ and other computer manufactures+ )he patent situation of 1onrad "uses computers were not solved at this time+ 9 decision of 1onrad "use patents were made in 19;0+ @ismana!ement+ )oo fast !rowin! of the compan + 5oftware unbundlin!+ )he development of software char!ed the compan more and more, but the customer did not want to pa man for that+ #o financial spares because computers were the onl production sub?ect+

5oftware production costs+

Zuse K- advertising slogan since 196,! 3n 196* the Zuse K- was bought by Iheinstahl+ then by ((; und finally in 196O completely by the 6iemens company! 3n 1969 the logo Zuse K- was deleted! Konrad Zuse left in 1969 the Zuse K-! 5rom my view+ Konrad Zuse is not a collapsed entrepreneur! 3t is easier to critici7e people than to ma'e it better! Konrad Zuse was years ahead with his company+ computers and ideas related to computers!

More than 244 machines deli7ered by Zuse K: 5around 13,#6

The Z31
"reas of application< (an's+ insurance companies+ research+ industry+ trade+ public service! ;ompilers for -erman formula code and "0->0 6, are available for the Z31!

Data sheet
#ame of the machine <mplementation 7reHuenc #umeric unit 9vera!e calculation speed <nput Futput Word len!th #umber of elements @emor .ower consumption Wei!ht 9rea of application 3ost in ,(@ 3omments zuse cs.tu!berlin.de "&1 )ransistors in @e!ahert$ techniHue 8&+000 *ert$ - electronic 10 decimal di!its with si!n 9pproG+ 100 operations per second .racticall all input devices available at the time .racticall all output devices available at the time 10 decimal di!its with si!n M 7errite core memor 200 to 1000 words 9pproG+ &000 watts 9pproG+ 1000 %! 4main unit6 3ommercial applications 2&0+000 7irst decimal computer produced b "use 1G+ 7irst machine in 19;&+

#umber of step switches none

#umber of machines sold 0