John von Neumann

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses John von Neumann's contributions to the fields of quantum physics, functional analysis, set theory, economics, computer science, numerical analysis, hydrodynamics, statistics and other mathematical fields. The paper also discusses his contribution to the creation of the hydrogen bomb. It goes on to describe some of his most influential achievements.

From the Paper:

"John Von Neumann inarguably contributed a wealth of knowledge to the development of computers, and without his contributions the face of technology today would be primitively underdeveloped. However, Neumann may have canceled out the "good" he did in an act of self-fulfilling equivalent exchange with his work in the realms of math and science with the contributions he made to warfare and massive weaponry. The name Von Neumann is associated as much with the Atomic Bomb as it is with computer programs (Wilson), and Neumann may have had even more devastating projects on the horizon at the time of his unexpected death from cancer. During the Second World War, von Neumann worked as a consulted to both armed forces and civilian agencies that were involved in wartime projects. Neumann's genius was in high demand, and he was able to design an implosion method for bringing nuclear fuel to explosion, as well as playing an integral part in the development of the hydrogen bomb. (Cabrera) According to one of Neumann's biographers, "It has been stated that von Neumann's electronic computer hastened the hydrogen bomb explosion on November 1, 1952." (Bochner)"

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bochner, Salomon. John von Neumann. National Academy of Sciences Biographical Memoirs 32 (1958): 456-451.
• Cabrera, Barney. "John von Neumann and von Neumann Architecture for Computers (1945)." Salem State University. <http://w3.salemstate.edu/~tevans/VonNeuma.htm>.
• "John von Neumann." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation. 5 May 2006. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_von_Neumann>
• Riley, H. Norton. "The von Neumann Architecture of Computer Systems." California State Polytechnic University Computer Science Department. September 1987. <http://www.csupomona.edu/~hnriley/www/VonN.html>
• Slater, Robert. Portraits in Silicon. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1987. Chapter 3.

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