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BRITISH SOCIETY FOR THE HISTORY OF SCIENCE
ACE 2000 CONFERENCE
SCIENCE MUSEUM OF LONDON, 18 MAY 2000
NATIONAL PHYSICAL LABORATORY, 19 MAY 2000
ACE 2000 will mark the 50th Anniversary of the Pilot Model Automatic
Computing Engine, London's first computer. Alan Turing's 'Proposal for
Development in the Mathematics Division of an Automatic Computing Engine
(ACE)', written in 1945, is the first relatively complete design for an
electronic stored-program general-purpose digital computer. The
contemporaneous U.S. document 'First Draft of a Report on the EDVAC'
contained little engineering detail, especially concerning electronic
hardware; Turing's proposal, on the other hand, contained detailed
electronic circuits, specimen programs in machine code, and even an
estimate of the cost of building the machine (£11,200).
The Pilot Model ACE ran its first program on May 10, 1950, at the National
Physical Laboratory. With a clock speed of 1 MHz, Pilot Model ACE was for
some time the fastest computer in the world. DEUCE, the production version
of the Pilot Model, was constructed by the English Electric Company. In
total more than 30 were sold. NPL's full-scale ACE began work in 1958. The
fundamentals of Turing's ACE design were used in the Bendix G15 computer.
The G15 was arguably the first personal computer and over 400 were sold
worldwide. DEUCE and the G15 remained in use until about 1970. Another
computer deriving from Turing's ACE design, the MOSAIC, played a role in
Britain's air defences during the Cold War period; other derivatives
include the Packard-Bell PB250 (1961).
Speakers at ACE 2000 include leading historians of computing and the
pioneers who constructed and programmed Pilot Model ACE and its
derivatives.
Organiser: Jack Copeland, The Turing Project, University of Canterbury, New
Zealand ([log in to unmask])
Conference website: http://www.AlanTuring.net/
PROGRAMME
ACE 2000 AT THE SCIENCE MUSEUM, EXHIBITION ROAD, SOUTH KENSINGTON, LONDON
SW7, 10.30 A.M. - 5.30 P.M., THURSDAY 18 MAY
ACE 2000 at the Science Museum will celebrate the Pilot Model ACE and
survey the ACE family of computers and the impact that these machines had
on British computing.
ACE 2000 at the Science Museum is hosted by the Computer Conservation Society.
9.30-10.30 COFFEE
10.30-11.10 OPENING ADDRESS Donald Davies
11.10-11.50 THE ACE AND THE SHAPING OF BRITISH COMPUTING Martin Campbell-Kelly
11.50-12.00 COFFEE
12.00-12.20 DEMONSTRATION OF THE PILOT ACE VIRTUAL REBUILD Donald Davies
12.20-1.00 THE DEUCE FAMILY George Davis
1.00-2.00 LUNCH AND MUSEUM TOUR
2.00-2.40 FROM ACE TO THE G15 Harry Huskey
2.40-3.20 CIRCUIT DESIGN OF THE PILOT MODEL AND BIG ACE David Clayden
3.20-4.00 PROGRAMMING THE PILOT MODEL Geoff Hayes
4.00-4.10 COFFEE
4.10-4.50 PROGRAMS ANCIENT AND MODERN Henry Norton
4.50-5.30 TO BE ANNOUNCED Mike Woodger
ACE 2000 AT THE NATIONAL PHYSICAL LABORATORY, BUSHY HOUSE, QUEENS ROAD,
TEDDINGTON, LONDON TW1, 10 A.M. - 6 P.M., FRIDAY 19 MAY
In 1945 the National Physical Laboratory hired Turing to design and develop
an electronic stored-program digital computer for scientific work. Pilot
Model ACE was built at NPL, an English Electric DEUCE was installed in
1955, and the full-scale ACE began work in 1958.
9.00-10.00 COFFEE
10.00-10.40 OPENING ADDRESS: CREATION OF MATHS DIVISION AND A NATIONAL
COMPUTING SERVICE Mary Croarken
10.40-11.20 A CENTURY OF MEASUREMENT AND COMPUTATION AT THE NPL Eileen Magnello
11.20-11.40 COFFEE
11.40-12.20 THE ACE COMPUTERS AND COMPUTER ARCHITECTURE Bob Doran
12.20-1.00 HOW AVAILABLE COMPONENTS INFLUENCED COMPUTER DESIGN Harry Huskey
1.00-2.00 LUNCH: buffet in Bushy House followed by A BOY IN A MAN'S WORLD
Henry Norton
2.00-2.40 MOSAIC David Anderson, Jack Copeland, Rod Smith
2.40-3.20 THE ACE PROJECT: FROM TURING MACHINE TO 'ELECTRONIC BRAIN' Teresa
Numerico
3.20-4.00 ACE TO AUTONOMICS David Clark
4.00-4.20 COFFEE
4.20-5.00 IMPACT OF COMPUTERS AT NPL Tom Vickers
5.00-5.40 WHAT TURING DID AFTER HE INVENTED THE UNIVERSAL TURING MACHINE
Jack Copeland
6.00 COACH TO CENTRAL LONDON AND HOTELS
ACCOMMODATION
Special conference rates have been arranged at three hotels in the vicinity
of the Science Museum. To make a booking at the conference rate, please
contact Paul Delaney-Jones at the London Tourist and Accommodation Service,
phone 0171 2449999 (press 1 for bookings) or fax 0171 3419999. The
conference reference is "ACE 2000". Paul will book a room in the hotel you
choose from the list below. He will require credit card details to hold the
reservation; there is no charge on your card until you check out from the
hotel. If you prefer not to use a credit card, a deposit will be required
to hold your reservation. Book soon!
FOUR STAR Normal rate £225 per night, ACE 2000 rates as low as £139 per
room (double or twin) per night, depending on availability.
10 minutes walk to the Science Museum.
THREE STAR ACE 2000 rate £100 per room (double or twin) per night. (Normal
rate £125 per night.)
15 minute walk or two stops on the tube to the Science Museum.
TWO STAR Single basic £40; single ensuite £55-£60; double/twin basic
£50-£60; double/twin ensuite £75-£85.
Reasonably close to the Science Museum.
REGISTRATION
To register, please complete this form and mail it with your payment to:
Wing Commander Geoffrey Bennett
Executive Secretary to the British Society for the History of Science,
31 High Street,
Stanford in the Vale,
Faringdon, Oxon SN7 8LH
UK
Fax: +44 -1367-718963
Email: [log in to unmask]
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ACE 2000 REGISTRATION
Name:
Address:
E-mail:
Phone:
Fax:
Please tick or cross out as approriate:
I will attend ACE 2000 at the Science Museum on Thursday 18 May
I will require lunch on 18 May at the Science Museum public cafeteria
(cost dependent on selection, pay at till)
I will attend ACE 2000 at the National Physical Laboratory on Friday 19 May
NB Attendance at the National Physical Laboratory on 19 May is limited to a
total of 65 people. If all the available seats have been allocated by the
time your registration form is received, and you have indicated a
preference to attend on both days, you will be registered only for ACE 2000
at the Science Musuem on May 18.
I will require buffet lunch on 19 May at NPL
(cost £10, pay at till)
I will require a ticket for the coach to the National Physical Laboratory,
Teddington, leaving on the morning of 19 May from outside the hotels listed
above and returning in the evening (cost £10, to be included with this
registration form)
I enclose my registration fee of £2 to cover the costs of processing my
registration.
(Thanks to the generosity of the Science Museum of London and of the
National Physical Laboratory, who are providing facilities for ACE 2000,
this is a 'nearly free' conference.)
Total amount enclosed: £
Payment must be by money order, credit card or cheque payable to "BSHS Ltd".
My credit card number is:
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*****PLEASE SHOW THIS TO ANYONE YOU KNOW WHO MAY BE INTERESTED*****
University of Canterbury, New Zealand
Ph.D Scholarship at The Turing Project, housed in the Department of
Philosophy [http://www.phil.canterbury.ac.nz/].
The Ph.D in Australasia is on the British model and is a pure research
degree, typically obtained in three years. The Scholarship recipient will
investigate the cognitive capabilities of neural networks evolving under
selective pressure. Research will include the design and execution of
experiments involving computer simulation using genetic algorithms, and the
philosophical interpretation of the results. Commencement date in 2000, to
suit either the Australasian or the Northern hemisphere academic year.
(This Scholarship may be held in conjunction with other scholarships, for
example the Canadian SHRC.)
The Scholarship includes the following. Living allowance: NZ$15,000 per
annum for three years. Fees scholarship: NZ$3,000 per annum for three
years. Conference travel scholarship: NZ$2,000.
Applicants should have a background in philosophy and computer science and
a good undergraduate or Masters degree. The closing date for applications
is 1 February 2000. Applications, which should include a curriculum vitae,
academic transcript, and the names, email addresses, and fax numbers of at
least two academic referees, are to be sent to:
Jack Copeland,
Dibner Institute,
Massachusetts Institute of Technology E56-100,
38 Memorial Drive, Cambridge MA 02139,
USA
(email: [log in to unmask])
with a copy to:
The Secretary,
Philosophy Dept
University of Canterbury
Christchurch
New Zealand
Fax: 64-3-3642889
*******************
Dr B.J. Copeland
Reader in Philosophy
University of Canterbury
Christchurch
New Zealand
Fax: 64-3-3642889
http://www.phil.canterbury.ac.nz/
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