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<p><b>New page</b></p><div>'''Howard Aiken''' was a professor of mathematics at Harvard, who best known for being responsible for the creation of a major early electro-mechanical [[computing device]], the [[Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator]] (or ASCC, also widely called the Harvard Mark I). It was an intermediate step between [[Charles Babbage|Babbage]]'s proposed [[Analytical Engine]], and the [[ENIAC]] in its initial form; it was first conceived of in 1937, and went into service in 1944. Its considerable use trained many people in the details of mathematics on machines.<br />
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Interestingly, Aiken, unlike many of those involved with later [[notable early computing devices|early computing devices]], and the first [[notable early computers|early computers]], was well-acquainted with Babbage's work, which may well have been an inspiration for him.<br />
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He also had a major impact, through the people whom he hired to work to work on the ASCC (such as [[Grace Hopper]]), and through his many students at Harvard (such as [[Gerrit Blaauw]], [[Kenneth Iverson]], and [[Frederick Brooks]]).<br />
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==Further reading==<br />
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* I. Bernard Cohen, ''Howard Aiken: Portrait of a Computer Pioneer'', MIT Press, Cambridge, 1999<br />
* I. Bernard Cohen, Gregory W. Welch (editors), ''Makin' Numbers: Howard Aiken and the Computer'', MIT Press, Cambridge, 1999<br />
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==External links==<br />
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* [https://www.computer.org/profiles/howard-aiken Howard H. Aiken - Award Recipient] - [[Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers|IEEE]] biography page<br />
* [https://www.historytools.org/people/howard-aiken Howard Aiken: The Forgotten Father of the Computer Age] - a good survey of his influence<br />
* [https://history-computer.com/people/howard-aiken-biography-history-and-inventions/ Howard Aiken – Biography, History and Inventions] - contains interesting details of his early life<br />
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[[Category: People]]</div>Jnc