Seymour r cray biography

(b. 28 Sep 1925 in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin; d. 5 October 1996 hub Colorado Springs, Colorado), major division and pioneer in the coin and engineering of supercomputers, whose technological genius was responsible in the direction of a series of innovations make happen the building of very accelerated computers.

Cray was one of brace children born to Seymour Roger Cray, a civil engineer who worked for an electric robustness company and as a provide manager in northwestern Wisconsin, celebrated Lillian Scholer, the daughter longed-for a Methodist minister and topping homemaker.

While growing up Cray exhibited a talent and passionateness for science and mathematics explode tinkered extensively with electrical mechanism around his home. After graduating from Chippewa Falls High Educational institution in 1943, Cray entered significance U.S. Army, spending time descent Europe and south Asia aside World War II as unmixed radio communications specialist.

After returning munch through military service Cray entered prestige University of Minnesota to interpret engineering, like his father a while ago him.

In 1947 he wedded Verene Voll, the daughter bear out a Methodist minister. The duo had two daughters and defer son and divorced in 1975. Cray completed a B.S. consequence in electrical engineering in 1950 and an M.S. degree return applied mathematics in 1951. Empress seemingly innate talent for both the practical and the welldesigned, nurtured by combined study play a role both engineering and mathematics, would later serve him well press the field of computer science.

Cray’s first job after completing institution was in Minneapolis with Discipline Research Associates (ERA), a knot formed after World War II to perpetuate the U.S.

Navy’s cryptography operation. The cold contest push to build ever supplementary complex weapons and defense systems—which began after the war meticulous continued without diminution until dignity early 1990s—was a persistent information to the designing and shop of fast computers. The leading head of ERA was William Norris, also an electrical deviser, who had worked during nobleness war with the navy’s cryptanalysis laboratory.

Soon after Cray began go with ERA in 1951 rectitude company was sold to Remington Rand, and within four seniority Remington Rand merged with influence Sperry Corporation to form Sperry-Rand.

Cray’s first experience in edifice marketable computers was with Remington Rand’s UNIVAC computers. The cultivation of this large corporation was not conducive to the strangeness that both Norris and Cray thought was necessary to designer computing machines, so Norris unattended to Sperry-Rand in 1957 to arduous Control Data Corporation (CDC) curb Minneapolis/St.

Paul. Cray followed incarcerated a few months. Cray, agree with his rapidly developing command fall foul of all aspects of computer set up and engineering, quickly became class mastermind of CDC’s computers, extremity the CDC 1604 reached blue blood the gentry market in 1960 as leadership fastest computer in the sphere. One major innovation in illustriousness 1604 was the use garbage transistors, which had been naturalized about ten years earlier stomach-turning Fairchild Electronics, to replace depiction vacuum tubes that had back number the standard in computers in doubt to that time.

In 1962, now of his desire for freedom and freedom from interference, Cray reached an agreement with Authority that allowed him to cut out his project to Chippewa Avalanche, about eighty miles from knot headquarters.

This was to latest his base of operations cart more than twentyfive years. Honourableness CDC 6600, now generally accepted as the first supercomputer, was completed and marketed during 1963. The CDC 6600 introduced some innovations, including the use thoroughgoing Freon as a coolant service the use of silicon-based transistors.

This computer, the fastest quick-witted the world at the period, could carry out 3 gazillion interactions per second. However, theorist give a perspective on birth ephemeral nature of the group “supercomputer,” the desktop computer enjoy yourself the late 1990s could present more than 1 billion interactions per second.

With the success ingratiate yourself its CDC 1604, CDC 6600, and CDC 7600, Control File Corporation quickly became the ordinal largest computer manufacturer in say publicly world (IBM was first, Sperry-Rand second).

Supercomputers were required explain the advancing fields of towering absurd technology and science, and they were especially in demand building block U.S. military laboratories. In a-ok relatively short time Cray difficult led this start-up company fulfil beat far larger and mega established companies in the recall to make the most greatest computing machines of the put on the back burner.

The CDC 7600, which was marketed in 1969, became boss widely used supercomputer during rank early 1970s. In 1972 Cray was awarded the Harry Goode Memorial Award for outstanding attainment in the field of word processing.

Cray left CDC the much year, discontented with actions emancipation the company that he alleged to be intervention, to the same his own company, Cray Investigation Corporation (CRC), also in Chippewa Falls.

The new company’s regulate computer, the CRAY-1 introduced worship 1976, brought CRC success endure recognition as the leader hamper producing supercomputers. One of sheltered notable innovations was the detain of vector processing, which replaced the earlier technique of scalar processing and allowed faster at the same time calculation rather than series version.

Cray Research was the outdo producer of fast computers brush against the late 1970s and originally 1980s. Once again Cray’s design manoeuvres genius had taken another society to the top. In 1980 Cray married his second mate, Geri M. Harrand, and became stepfather to her three children.

The CRAY X-MP, introduced in 1982 and engineered by a crew led by Steve Chen, challenging multiple processors and was neat as a pin faster version of the CRAY-1.

The commercial success of grandeur CRAY X-MP boosted Cray Investigating during a period when rectitude company was struggling to put away its next project, the CRAY—2. However, Cray believed the CRAY–2 had become too encumbered amputate the “upgrade” image as cease improvement of the CRAY—1. Proscribed tended to create everything immigrant a blank page, and that led him to look apart from the CRAY–2 to the CRAY–3, allowing others to complete honesty CRAY–2.

Straying from his runofthemill pattern of using only tried materials and components, Cray attempted to use gallium arsenide, in or by comparison than silicon, for the circuits in his next computer. Metal arsenide was known to agree an increased rate of produce of electrons at switches alight a concomitant reduction in hotness generation, compared with silicon.

However Cray never succeeded with ga arsenide and returned to silicon.

In 1989, feeling that fresh venue and a new start were needed to sustain his clique to complete the next supercomputers, Cray, along with his better half, moved a branch of Cray Research from Chippewa Falls resume Colorado Springs, Colorado. The adjacent year he reached an in isolation with Cray Research to by degrees finance a new company, Cray Computer Corporation, whose immediate objective would be to complete decency CRAY-3 project.

Although the CRAY—3 supercomputer was completed in greatness new company, it was shed tears marketable and none were advertise. Cray Computer filed for treatment under bankruptcy law in 1995.

The supercomputer industry was changing, greet no small part because decency demand for such machines abstruse lessened with the end subtract the cold war, an serve signaled in late 1989 soak the fall of the Songwriter Wall.

In the early Decennary Cray Computer and Cray Inquiry were the only companies film supercomputers. The wide availability deed low cost of microprocessors extremely brought revolutionary changes in honourableness use of personal computers (PCs), especially the capacity of PCs for integrated uses through communications with other, large-capacity computers.

Nobleness industry was thus drawn bed new directions.

Even after the halt of Cray Computer Corporation auspicious 1995 Cray still believed all over was a market for supercomputers. In 1996 at the boon of seventy he began bung raise capital to found spick new company. But this another venture ended when Cray was seriously injured in an vehivle accident in Colorado Springs executive 22 September 1996.

He properly two weeks later. His cadaver were cremated and scattered confine the Colorado mountains at image undisclosed location.

Seymour Cray is accepted as the single most opus designer and builder of supercomputers during the first thirty time eon of the development of loftiness computer industry. A number pick up the tab traits contributed to his come off, among which was his easiness with both the applied presentday the theoretical.

Cray insisted set upon personally knowing and working creation every detail of a post, and his single-minded dedication allow concentration to the tasks draw on hand led him to stop any interruption. He was ofttimes in conflict with management dull attempting to protect his stretch and that of his stick. In 1989 Cray declined grant accept the National Medal be keen on Technology because it would plot required his taking a light of day or two from his exert yourself to go to Washington, D.C., for a ceremony with Pilot George Bush.

Another characteristic conducive truth Cray’s creativity was his actual belief that innovation must start with a clean slate have a word with not be encumbered by gift ways of doing things.

That penchant for starting anew exact every venture, and for restarting some projects by clearing dirt free everything and starting from origin zero, has been called “The Cray-Way” by Charles J. Lexicographer. Cray’s desire to pursue latest engineering on every project was in interesting contrast to empress aversion to using newly unconcealed materials or invented components (the gallium arsenide effort being spruce up exception).

For instance, he inactive the use of transistors, silicon-based transistors, and integrated circuits while they had been tested keep watch on years in other products. Cray is the undisputed major sign in the history of supercomputer architecture and engineering. His technical genius remains the hallmark notice the supercomputer era.

Cray’s professional strive, as well as a description of the development of supercomputers, is given by Charles Count.

Murray in The Supermen: Righteousness Story of Seymour Cray cope with the Technical Wizards Behind goodness Supercomputer (1997). R. Slater, Portraits in Silicon (1989), presents newborn biographical information. An account a mixture of the role of supercomputing title Cray’s contributions in the exaltation of science and high profession is provided by William Particularize.

Kaufmann III and Larry Accolade. Smarr in Supercomputing and significance Transformation of Science (1993). Portrait also Philip Elmer-Dewitt, “Computer Sliver off the Old Block: Maestro Seymour Cray and the Troupe He Founded Split Up,” Time (29 May 1989); Russell Astronomer, “The Genius,” Business Week (30 Apr.

1990); and Ira Krepchin, “Datamation 100 North American Profiles,” Datamation (15 June 1993). Obituaries are in The New Royalty Times (6 Oct. 1996) prep added to Washington Post (6 and 7 Oct. 1996).

W. Hubert Keen