Konrad Zuse
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Konrad Zuse | |
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.jpg) Konrad Zuse in 1992 | |
| Born | Konrad Ernst Otto Zuse 22 June 1910 Berlin, Prussia, German Empire |
| Died | 18 December 1995 (aged 85) Hünfeld, Hesse, Germany |
| Alma mater | Technische Universität Berlin |
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| Institutions | Aerodynamic Research Institute |
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Konrad Zuse (June 22, 1910 – December 18, 1995) was a German infrastructure engineer, computer scientist, inventor, and businessman. His greatest achievement was the world's first programmable computer, the Z3, which began operating in May 1941. Zuse is often considered the inventor of the modern computer.
Zuse is also credited with creating the S2 computer, considered the first process-controlled computer. He founded one of the earliest computer businesses in 1941, producing the Z4, the world's first commercial computer. From 1943 he designed the first high-level programming language, Plankalkül. In 1969, Zuse proposed the concept of a computationally based universe in his book Rechnender Raum (Spatial Computing).
Much of his early work was funded by family and commerce, but after 1939 he was provided with resources by the Nazi German government. Due to World War II, Zuse's achievements went largely unnoticed in the United Kingdom and the United States. His first possible document influence on an American company was IBM's selection of his patents in 1946.
There is a replica of the Z3 computer, as well as the original Z4 computer, in the Deutsches Museum in Munich. The Archches Technikmuseum in Berlin has an exhibition dedicated to Zuse, displaying twelve of his computers, including a replica of the Z1 and several paintings by Zuse.
References
Books
- Zuse, Konrad (1993). The Computer – My Life. Berlin/Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag. ISBN 0-387-56453-5 (translated from the original German edition (1984): Der Computer – Mein Lebenswerk. Springer. ISBN 3-540-56292-3.) ( Electronic version from Springer)
- Zuse, Konrad (1969). Rechnender Raum Braunschweig: Vieweg & Sohn. ISBN 3-528-09609-8
- Rechnender Raum Archived 2020-06-18 at the Wayback Machine (PDF document), Elektronische Datenverarbeitung, 8: 336–344, 1967.
- Calculating Space[permanent dead link] English translation as PDF document
- Zuse, Konrad. Direction-bound engraving tool with program control. U.S. Patent 3,163,936
- U.S.Patents 3,234,819; 3,306,128; 3,408,483; 3,356,852; 3,316,442
Further reading
- Konrad Zuse: The Computer – My Life, Springer Verlag, ISBN 3-540-56453-5, ISBN 0-387-56453-5
- Jürgen Alex, Hermann Flessner, Wilhelm Mons, Horst Zuse: Konrad Zuse: Der Vater des Computers. Parzeller, Fulda 2000, ISBN 3-7900-0317-4
- Raul Rojas (Hrsg.): Die Rechenmaschinen von Konrad Zuse. Springer, Berlin 1998, ISBN 3-540-63461-4.
- Wilhelm Füßl (Ed.): 100 Jahre Konrad Zuse. Einblicke in den Nachlass, München 2010, ISBN 978-3-940396-14-3.
- Jürgen Alex: Wege und Irrwege des Konrad Zuse. In: Spektrum der Wissenschaft (dt. Ausgabe von Scientific American) 1/1997, ISSN 0170-2971.
- Hadwig Dorsch: Der erste Computer. Konrad Zuses Z1 – Berlin 1936. Beginn und Entwicklung einer technischen Revolution. Mit Beiträgen von Konrad Zuse und Otto Lührs. Museum für Verkehr und Technik, Berlin 1989.
- Clemens Kieser: „Ich bin zu faul zum Rechnen" – Konrad Zuses Computer Z22 im Zentrum für Kunst und Medientechnologie Karlsruhe. In: Denkmalpflege in Baden-Württemberg, 4/34/2005, Esslingen am Neckar, S. 180–184, ISSN 0342-0027.
- Mario G. Losano (ed.), Zuse. L'elaboratore nasce in Europa. Un secolo di calcolo automatico, Etas Libri, Milano 1975, pp. XVIII-184.
- Arno Peters: Was ist und wie verwirklicht sich Computer-Sozialismus: Gespräche mit Konrad Zuse. Verlag Neues Leben, Berlin 2000, ISBN 3-355-01510-5.
- Paul Janositz: Informatik und Konrad Zuse: Der Pionier des Computerbaus in Europa – Das verkannte Genie aus Adlershof. In: Der Tagesspiegel Nr. 19127, Berlin, 9. März 2006, Beilage Seite B3.
- Jürgen Alex: Zum Einfluß elementarer Sätze der mathematischen Logik bei Alfred Tarski auf die drei Computerkonzepte des Konrad Zuse. TU Chemnitz 2006.
- Jürgen Alex: Zur Entstehung des Computers – von Alfred Tarski zu Konrad Zuse. VDI-Verlag, Düsseldorf 2007, ISBN 978-3-18-150051-4, ISSN 0082-2361.
- Herbert Bruderer: Konrad Zuse und die Schweiz. Wer hat den Computer erfunden? Charles Babbage, Alan Turing und John von Neumann Oldenbourg Verlag, München 2012, XXVI, 224 Seiten, ISBN 978-3-486-71366-4