AN ELECTRIC THINKER.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20316, 26 January 1928, Page 15

AN ELECTRIC THINKER.

Au electrical machine which thinks for itself has been developed in the Department of Electrical Engineering of the Massachusetts Institute of . Technology. Into this “mechanical mind/’ says the Literary Digest, can be fed the conditions of a mathematical problem too complex for the humn brain to master, and it will promptly grind out the answer and write it dwn as efficiently as a machine takes in lumber and chemicals and produces finished boxes of matches. We quote from a press bulletin issued by the institute: — “ The new machine, which is called the ' product infograph,’ opens the doors to important fields of research hitherto inaccessible. It was developed by Dr Vannevar Bush, Professor of Electric Power Transmission, and a staff of research workers, including F. G. Kear, H. L. Hazeu, H. It. Stewart, and F. D. Gage. The work was begun several years ago with the object of meeting the urgent need for a machine which would automatically solve problems of advanced electrical theory rapidly.' and with a high degree of accuracy." A technical description of the instrument is to be published by the Franklin Institute. “The product mtegraph, Dr Bush explained, “might be called an adding machine carried to an extreme in its design. Where workers in the business world are ordinarily satisfied with addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division of numbers, the engineer deals with curves and graphs which represent for him the past, present, and future of the things in whicn tie deals.’ , . , . . “The integraph, a device of electrical measurements, gears, and recording tables, is virtually a man-made brain, which transcends human reasoning and readily plots the answer to problems that cannot now be solved by formal mathematics. It requires from eight minutes to a few hours to make computations which would take an engineer from a month to a year to work out by ordinary methods. “ The foundation of the integraph is a watt-hour meter of the same type as that used in everyone’s home for recording the amount of power used during the month. This machine adds up the power which is used from time to time, and records the sum on its dials. It does this by running as a motor. “ Integration is merely a mathematical way of expressing the sum of a series of numbers, which vary according to a given rule. The mathematician, in using the integraph, takes an algebraic equation and plots it on a sheet of paper. These sheets are then passed slowly along pointers, and operators stationed along the length of the machine keep the pointers on the curves. As these pointers move up and down, the power flowing through the meter varies in proportion, and the number of revolutions it makes during the peration is the integral or sum which is desired. “ Instead of moving hands over a dial, the meter controls a motor through a relay, and the motor is made to drive a pencil on another sheet of paper, also moving slowly along. The result of all this is to trace on the sheet a curve which expresses the result sought. “ The machine does not stop at this, however, but by a second integrating device, somewhat different than the first, but performing the same operation, integrates the result a second time. This makes the machine even more valuable, since many electrical equations that require but two integrations can thus be handled directly. “ Another device is a system of back coupling, whereby the curves, which must be followed by the pointers, depend upon the final result itself. This is accomplished by driving the tables upon which the plotted curves arc fastened by means of the same motor which drives the recording pencil. “ The machine will solve practically any second order differential equation, which is a type of equation with which engineers have a great deal to do. Many of these equations can be formally solved only after long computation extending over months, whereas this machine accomplishes the same results in at most an afternoon.’’