MANIAC II
Encyclopedia
The MANIAC II was a first-generation electronic computer
, built in 1957 for use at Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory.
MANIAC II was built by the University of California
and the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, completed in 1957. It used 2,850 Vacuum tube
s and 1,040 semiconductor
diode
s in the arithmetic unit. Overall it used 5,190 vacuum tubes, 3,050 semiconductor diodes, and 1,160 transistor
s.
It had 4,096 words of memory
in magnetic core
(with 2.4 microsecond access time), supplemented by 12,288 words of memory using Williams tube
s (with 15 microsecond access time). The word size was 48 bit
s. Its average multiplication time was 180 microseconds and the average division time was 300 microseconds.
By the time of its decommissioning, the computer was all solid-state, using a combination of
RTL
, DTL
and TTL
. It had an array multiplier, 15 index registers, 16K of 6 microsecond cycle time core memory, and 64K of 2 microsecond cycle time core memory. A NOP instruction took about 2.5 microseconds. A Multiply took 8 microseconds, and a divide 25 microseconds. It had a paging unit using 1K word pages with an associative 16-deep lookup memory. A 1 Megaword CDC drum was hooked up as a paging device. It also had several ADDS Special-Order Direct-View Storage-Tube terminals. These terminals used an extended character set which covered about all the mathematical symbols, and allowed for 1/2 line spacing for math formulas.
For I/O, it had 2 IBM 360 series 9-track and 2 7-track 1/2" tape drives. It had an 8-bit paper-tape reader and punch, and a 500 line-per-minute printer (1500 line-per-minute using the hexadecimal character set). Storage was 3 IBM 7000 series 1301 disk drives, each having 2 modules of 21.6 million characters apiece.
One of the data products of MANIAC II was the table of numbers appearing in the book "The 3-j and 6-j Symbols" by Manuel Rotenberg et al., published in 1959. Page 37 of that book contains a brief description of the implementation of the program on the computer, and the I/O devices used in the production of the book.
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
, built in 1957 for use at Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory.
MANIAC II was built by the University of California
University of California
The University of California is a public university system in the U.S. state of California. Under the California Master Plan for Higher Education, the University of California is a part of the state's three-tier public higher education system, which also includes the California State University...
and the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory, completed in 1957. It used 2,850 Vacuum tube
Vacuum tube
In electronics, a vacuum tube, electron tube , or thermionic valve , reduced to simply "tube" or "valve" in everyday parlance, is a device that relies on the flow of electric current through a vacuum...
s and 1,040 semiconductor
Semiconductor
A semiconductor is a material with electrical conductivity due to electron flow intermediate in magnitude between that of a conductor and an insulator. This means a conductivity roughly in the range of 103 to 10−8 siemens per centimeter...
diode
Diode
In electronics, a diode is a type of two-terminal electronic component with a nonlinear current–voltage characteristic. A semiconductor diode, the most common type today, is a crystalline piece of semiconductor material connected to two electrical terminals...
s in the arithmetic unit. Overall it used 5,190 vacuum tubes, 3,050 semiconductor diodes, and 1,160 transistor
Transistor
A transistor is a semiconductor device used to amplify and switch electronic signals and power. It is composed of a semiconductor material with at least three terminals for connection to an external circuit. A voltage or current applied to one pair of the transistor's terminals changes the current...
s.
It had 4,096 words of memory
Computer storage
Computer data storage, often called storage or memory, refers to computer components and recording media that retain digital data. Data storage is one of the core functions and fundamental components of computers....
in magnetic core
Magnetic core
A magnetic core is a piece of magnetic material with a high permeability used to confine and guide magnetic fields in electrical, electromechanical and magnetic devices such as electromagnets, transformers, electric motors, inductors and magnetic assemblies. It is made of ferromagnetic metal such...
(with 2.4 microsecond access time), supplemented by 12,288 words of memory using Williams tube
Williams tube
The Williams tube or the Williams-Kilburn tube , developed in about 1946 or 1947, was a cathode ray tube used to electronically store binary data....
s (with 15 microsecond access time). The word size was 48 bit
Bit
A bit is the basic unit of information in computing and telecommunications; it is the amount of information stored by a digital device or other physical system that exists in one of two possible distinct states...
s. Its average multiplication time was 180 microseconds and the average division time was 300 microseconds.
By the time of its decommissioning, the computer was all solid-state, using a combination of
RTL
Resistor-transistor logic
Resistor–transistor logic is a class of digital circuits built using resistors as the input network and bipolar junction transistors as switching devices...
, DTL
Diode-transistor logic
Diode–transistor logic is a class of digital circuits that is the direct ancestor of transistor–transistor logic. It is called so because the logic gating function is performed by a diode network and the amplifying function is performed by a transistor .- Implementations :The DTL circuit shown in...
and TTL
Transistor-transistor logic
Transistor–transistor logic is a class of digital circuits built from bipolar junction transistors and resistors. It is called transistor–transistor logic because both the logic gating function and the amplifying function are performed by transistors .TTL is notable for being a widespread...
. It had an array multiplier, 15 index registers, 16K of 6 microsecond cycle time core memory, and 64K of 2 microsecond cycle time core memory. A NOP instruction took about 2.5 microseconds. A Multiply took 8 microseconds, and a divide 25 microseconds. It had a paging unit using 1K word pages with an associative 16-deep lookup memory. A 1 Megaword CDC drum was hooked up as a paging device. It also had several ADDS Special-Order Direct-View Storage-Tube terminals. These terminals used an extended character set which covered about all the mathematical symbols, and allowed for 1/2 line spacing for math formulas.
For I/O, it had 2 IBM 360 series 9-track and 2 7-track 1/2" tape drives. It had an 8-bit paper-tape reader and punch, and a 500 line-per-minute printer (1500 line-per-minute using the hexadecimal character set). Storage was 3 IBM 7000 series 1301 disk drives, each having 2 modules of 21.6 million characters apiece.
One of the data products of MANIAC II was the table of numbers appearing in the book "The 3-j and 6-j Symbols" by Manuel Rotenberg et al., published in 1959. Page 37 of that book contains a brief description of the implementation of the program on the computer, and the I/O devices used in the production of the book.