Systems
MANIAC I
Early Computer
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The MANIAC I, short for Mathematical Analyzer Numerical Integrator and Automatic Computer Model I, was an early computer built under the direction of Nicholas Metropolis at the Los Alamos Scientific Laboratory. It was based on the von Neumann architecture of the IAS machine. As with almost all computers of its era, it was a one-of-a-kind machine that could not exchange programs with other computers. Metropolis chose the name MANIAC in the hope of stopping the rash of silly acronyms for machine names, although von Neumann may have suggested the name to him.
Facts
SignificanceIn 1956, MANIAC I became the first computer to defeat a human being in a chess-like game, a variant called Los Alamos chess played on a reduced six-by-six board without bishops because of the machine's limited memory and computing power. 1 Cross-Tradition Connections
Preceded By
IAS Machine, Systems MANIAC I was based on the IAS machine's von Neumann architecture, though it remained a distinct, one-of-a-kind machine unable to exchange programs with other IAS-derived computers.
Sources
1. Wikipedia: MANIAC I
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In 1956, MANIAC I became the first computer to defeat a human being in a chess-like game.
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