World War II Honoree

Herman Heine Goldstine

Branch of Service

U.S. Army

Hometown

Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania

Honored By

Ralph Bozorth

HE WAS A SCIENTIST WHO PERSUADED THE UNITED STATES MILITARY TO BACK THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE FIRST COMPUTER, ENIAC, AND HIS PART IN ENIAC BEGAN IN 1942, WHEN HE ENLISTED IN THE ARMY. THE ARMY SENT THE ACCOMPLISHED MATHEMATICIAN TO THE BALLISTIC RESEARCH LABORATORY AT ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND IN MARYLAND, WHERE HE WORKED ON ORDNANCE PROJECTS. IN 1943, HE CAME ACROSS A MEMO FROM UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA SCIENTISTS J. PRESPER ECKERT AND JOHN MAUCHLY PROPOSING THAT A CALCULATING MACHINE COULD BE USED TO DETERMINE 'FIRING TABLES' USED TO AIM ARTILLERY. THOSE TABLES - THE SETTINGS USED FOR DIRECTING ARTILLERY UNDER VARIED CONDITIONS AND TAKING INTO ACCOUNT SUCH VARIABLES AS ROUNDS, WEATHER AND ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS, AND DISTANCE TO TARGET - TOOK HOURS TO CALCULATE. HE PERSUADED THE ARMY BRASS TO FUND THE TWO YOUNG SCIENTISTS' PROJECT, AND THE COMPUTER AGE WAS LAUNCHED. HE UNDERSTOOD THE SOPHISTICATED IDEAS AND PRINCIPLES THAT MAUCHLY AND ECKERT EMPLOYED IN DEVELOPING DIGITAL COMPUTERS THAT OPERATED WITH NUMERICAL VALUES EXPRESSED AS DIGITS AS OPPOSED TO ANALOGS. INTRIGUED BY THEIR PROPOSAL, HE THEN LOBBIED THE BRASS AT ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND IN APRIL 1943, REQUESTING $500,000 TO PAY FOR THE RESEARCH. HE BELIEVED THE ARMY, WHICH WAS ALREADY SHIPPING GUNS OVERSEAS WITHOUT FIRING TABLES, WAS IN A BIG ENOUGH JAM TO PUT MONEY ON A LONG SHOT. HE RAN THE SHOW FOR THE ARMY, AND A TEAM OF SCIENTISTS AND ENGINEERS WAS ASSEMBLED AT PENN'S MOORE SCHOOL TO BUILD THE COMPUTER, WITH MAUCHLY AND ECKERT SUPERVISING. THE PROJECT WAS KEPT SECRET AS A MATTER OF NATIONAL SECURITY.