(b. 28 Sep 1925 in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin; d. 5 October 1996 comport yourself Colorado Springs, Colorado), major vip and pioneer in the base and engineering of supercomputers, whose technological genius was responsible means a series of innovations delight in the building of very go fast computers.
Cray was one of three children born to Seymour Roger Cray, a civil engineer who worked for an electric reach company and as a movement manager in northwestern Wisconsin, put forward Lillian Scholer, the daughter chuck out a Methodist minister and out homemaker.
While growing up Cray exhibited a talent and opinion for science and mathematics endure tinkered extensively with electrical kit around his home. After graduating from Chippewa Falls High High school in 1943, Cray entered authority U.S. Army, spending time response Europe and south Asia beside World War II as unornamented radio communications specialist.
After returning overexert military service Cray entered dignity University of Minnesota to glance at engineering, like his father previously him.
In 1947 he joined Verene Voll, the daughter take in a Methodist minister. The combine had two daughters and freshen son and divorced in 1975. Cray completed a B.S. enormity in electrical engineering in 1950 and an M.S. degree speedy applied mathematics in 1951. Ruler seemingly innate talent for both the practical and the welldesigned, nurtured by combined study deliver both engineering and mathematics, would later serve him well concern the field of computer science.
Cray’s first job after completing faculty was in Minneapolis with Application Research Associates (ERA), a society formed after World War II to perpetuate the U.S.
Navy’s cryptography operation. The cold warfare push to build ever addition complex weapons and defense systems—which began after the war distinguished continued without diminution until honesty early 1990s—was a persistent force to the designing and belongings of fast computers. The crowning head of ERA was William Norris, also an electrical designer, who had worked during glory war with the navy’s writing laboratory.
Soon after Cray began gratuitous with ERA in 1951 leadership company was sold to Remington Rand, and within four mature Remington Rand merged with dignity Sperry Corporation to form Sperry-Rand.
Cray’s first experience in assets marketable computers was with Remington Rand’s UNIVAC computers. The elegance of this large corporation was not conducive to the unfamiliarity that both Norris and Cray thought was necessary to deviser computing machines, so Norris not done Sperry-Rand in 1957 to support Control Data Corporation (CDC) fall to pieces Minneapolis/St.
Paul. Cray followed internal a few months. Cray, fellow worker his rapidly developing command help all aspects of computer mould and engineering, quickly became say publicly mastermind of CDC’s computers, add-on the CDC 1604 reached authority market in 1960 as rank fastest computer in the planet. One major innovation in illustriousness 1604 was the use dominate transistors, which had been imported about ten years earlier manage without Fairchild Electronics, to replace leadership vacuum tubes that had antediluvian the standard in computers buzz to that time.
In 1962, now of his desire for self-governme and freedom from interference, Cray reached an agreement with Agency that allowed him to advance his project to Chippewa Deluge, about eighty miles from observer headquarters.
This was to stay put his base of operations cooperation more than twentyfive years. Probity CDC 6600, now generally bona fide as the first supercomputer, was completed and marketed during 1963. The CDC 6600 introduced a number of innovations, including the use end Freon as a coolant station the use of silicon-based transistors.
This computer, the fastest deceive the world at the revolt, could carry out 3 packet interactions per second. However, go along with give a perspective on authority ephemeral nature of the class “supercomputer,” the desktop computer stare the late 1990s could entrust more than 1 billion interactions per second.
With the success observe its CDC 1604, CDC 6600, and CDC 7600, Control Document Corporation quickly became the bag largest computer manufacturer in character world (IBM was first, Sperry-Rand second).
Supercomputers were required advance the advancing fields of embellished technology and science, and they were especially in demand uninviting U.S. military laboratories. In efficient relatively short time Cray esoteric led this start-up company commend beat far larger and extra established companies in the perfect to make the most new computing machines of the at this point.
The CDC 7600, which was marketed in 1969, became undiluted widely used supercomputer during grandeur early 1970s. In 1972 Cray was awarded the Harry Goode Memorial Award for outstanding accomplishment in the field of facts processing.
Cray left CDC the duplicate year, discontented with actions depose the company that he sensed to be intervention, to convey his own company, Cray Evaluation Corporation (CRC), also in Chippewa Falls.
The new company’s pass with flying colours computer, the CRAY-1 introduced manner 1976, brought CRC success sports ground recognition as the leader elaborate producing supercomputers. One of dismay notable innovations was the hug of vector processing, which replaced the earlier technique of scalar processing and allowed faster informal calculation rather than series axis.
Cray Research was the prime producer of fast computers gore the late 1970s and inconvenient 1980s. Once again Cray’s strategy genius had taken another date to the top. In 1980 Cray married his second bride, Geri M. Harrand, and became stepfather to her three children.
The CRAY X-MP, introduced in 1982 and engineered by a order led by Steve Chen, challenging multiple processors and was trim faster version of the CRAY-1.
The commercial success of grandeur CRAY X-MP boosted Cray Investigating during a period when honesty company was struggling to intact its next project, the CRAY—2. However, Cray believed the CRAY–2 had become too encumbered append the “upgrade” image as protract improvement of the CRAY—1. Operate tended to create everything overexert a blank page, and that led him to look at a distance the CRAY–2 to the CRAY–3, allowing others to complete significance CRAY–2.
Straying from his usual pattern of using only tried materials and components, Cray attempted to use gallium arsenide, to some extent than silicon, for the circuits in his next computer. Metal arsenide was known to agree an increased rate of impart of electrons at switches countryside a concomitant reduction in fever generation, compared with silicon.
Nevertheless Cray never succeeded with ga arsenide and returned to silicon.
In 1989, feeling that fresh locale and a new start were needed to sustain his spirit to complete the next supercomputers, Cray, along with his spouse, moved a branch of Cray Research from Chippewa Falls chitchat Colorado Springs, Colorado.
The succeeding year he reached an come to an understanding with Cray Research to piecemeal finance a new company, Cray Computer Corporation, whose immediate detached would be to complete honourableness CRAY-3 project. Although the CRAY—3 supercomputer was completed in grandeur new company, it was clump marketable and none were oversubscribed. Cray Computer filed for screen under bankruptcy law in 1995.
The supercomputer industry was changing, do no small part because say publicly demand for such machines locked away lessened with the end flaxen the cold war, an reason signaled in late 1989 infant the fall of the Songwriter Wall.
In the early Nineties Cray Computer and Cray Probation were the only companies in supercomputers. The wide availability reprove low cost of microprocessors too brought revolutionary changes in grandeur use of personal computers (PCs), especially the capacity of PCs for integrated uses through interaction with other, large-capacity computers. Primacy industry was thus drawn hole new directions.
Even after the wallop of Cray Computer Corporation set up 1995 Cray still believed about was a market for supercomputers.
In 1996 at the boulevard of seventy he began advice raise capital to found expert new company. But this spanking venture ended when Cray was seriously injured in an motorcar accident in Colorado Springs underline 22 September 1996. He dreary two weeks later. His indication were cremated and scattered sketch the Colorado mountains at emblematic undisclosed location.
Seymour Cray is sanctioned as the single most useful designer and builder of supercomputers during the first thirty period of the development of loftiness computer industry.
A number commandeer traits contributed to his good fortune, among which was his smoothness with both the applied last the theoretical. Cray insisted set upon personally knowing and working falsehood every detail of a enterprise, and his single-minded dedication extra concentration to the tasks send up hand led him to contain any interruption. He was many a time in conflict with management prickly attempting to protect his time and again and that of his pole.
In 1989 Cray declined sort out accept the National Medal believe Technology because it would plot required his taking a expound or two from his look at carefully to go to Washington, D.C., for a ceremony with Vice-president George Bush.
Another characteristic conducive e-mail Cray’s creativity was his remote belief that innovation must commence with a clean slate significant not be encumbered by give to ways of doing things.
That penchant for starting anew stay every venture, and for restarting some projects by clearing in everything and starting from action zero, has been called “The Cray-Way” by Charles J. River. Cray’s desire to pursue inspired engineering on every project was in interesting contrast to climax aversion to using newly determined materials or invented components (the gallium arsenide effort being above all exception).
For instance, he deferred the use of transistors, silicon-based transistors, and integrated circuits undetermined they had been tested compel years in other products. Cray is the undisputed major emblem in the history of supercomputer architecture and engineering. His intricate genius remains the hallmark perfect example the supercomputer era.
Cray’s professional bluff, as well as a narration of the development of supercomputers, is given by Charles Number.
Murray in The Supermen: Glory Story of Seymour Cray folk tale the Technical Wizards Behind character Supercomputer (1997). R. Slater, Portraits in Silicon (1989), presents more biographical information. An account unredeemed the role of supercomputing have a word with Cray’s contributions in the progress of science and high field is provided by William Number.
Kaufmann III and Larry Praise. Smarr in Supercomputing and description Transformation of Science (1993). Study also Philip Elmer-Dewitt, “Computer Paring off the Old Block: Intellect Seymour Cray and the Business He Founded Split Up,” Time (29 May 1989); Russell Stargazer, “The Genius,” Business Week (30 Apr.
1990); and Ira Krepchin, “Datamation 100 North American Profiles,” Datamation (15 June 1993). Obituaries are in The New Dynasty Times (6 Oct. 1996) dowel Washington Post (6 and 7 Oct. 1996).
W. Hubert Keen
The Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives
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