Author

John von Neumann

1903-1957 · Hungarian-born American mathematician who worked in quantum mechanics, game theory, and computing

About John von Neumann

John von Neumann (1903-1957) was a Hungarian-born mathematician whose work ranged across set theory, quantum mechanics, game theory, economics, numerical analysis, and computing. After emigrating to the United States, he taught at Princeton and the Institute for Advanced Study and advised major wartime and Cold War scientific projects. His name became attached, somewhat controversially, to the stored-program architecture described in this report.

Notable works

First Draft of a Report on the EDVAC (1945)
Theory of Games and Economic Behavior (1944)
Mathematical Foundations of Quantum Mechanics (1932)
The Computer and the Brain (1958)

On this site

First Draft of a Report on the EDVAC

John von Neumann

1945 · Computing · Computing

First Draft of a Report on the EDVAC is not a polished monograph but a technical memorandum whose influence exceeds its form. Written in 1945 for the Electronic Discrete Variable Automatic Computer project, it describes a general-purpose electronic digital computer in which numerical data and operating instructions occupy the same high-speed memory.

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