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WEIZAC: An Israeli Pioneering Adventure in Electronic Computing (1945–1963) pp 5–36Cite as

Creating a Top-Rated Scientific Institution in Rehovot at the Dawn of the Digital Age

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Part of the book series: SpringerBriefs in History of Science and Technology ((BRIEFSHIST))

Abstract

The story of WEIZAC is the unlikely story of how an electronic automatic computing machine was built and became operational during the early years of the State of Israel. This chapter describes two prarallel historical threads which are the heart of the story: (1) the early years of electronic computing, in the period between 1945 and 1960; (2) the establishment and early years of a leading scientific institution in Rehovot as part of the Zionist project for building a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine. Attention is also devoted to introducing the key protagonists of the WEIZAC project.

The original version of this chapter was revised: The correction to this chapter is available at https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-25734-7_5

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Notes

  1. 1.

    As an interesting anecdote we can point out here, that the chief engineer of the two GOLEM projects (see below), Smil Ruhman (1925–) joined WIS in 1961 after having worked at the EDVAC as a student at the Moore school. His task in that project was to document the design. According to his testimony (Interview with Ruhman, by R. Leviathan in Dec. 11, 2013), this was the best way to learn about the design of electronic computers.

  2. 2.

    Maxwell Newman led one of the Bletchley Park groups during World War II. After the war, he participated in the Mark 1 project at the University of Manchester. See (Computer Pioneers—Maxwell (Max) Herman Alexander Newman [Changed by deed poll in 1916 from Neumann.] 1995), https://history.computer.org/pioneers/newman-mha.html (accessed Jul. 7, 2018).

  3. 3.

    In the original EDVAC draft, each memory word included a special bit to indicate if it represented data or a command.

  4. 4.

    Compiled from Intel Microprocessor Quick Reference Guide—Product Family, https://www.intel.com/pressroom/kits/quickreffam.htm#core2 (accessed May 30, 2018); (Estrin 1952).

  5. 5.

    Information compiled from various sources: Aspray (1986), History| Argonne National Laboratory https://www.anl.gov/about-argonne/history; Digital Computer Newsletter, Office of Naval Research—Mathematical Sciences Division (Vol. 5 (1 and 4); Vol. 6 (1 and 2); Vol. 7 (3); Vol. 11 (3); Electronic Computer Project, IAS, 2017. https://www.ias.edu/electronic-computer-project (accessed Dec. 18, 2017). See also Prokhorov (1999).

  6. 6.

    Specifically: the Tata computer had only 100–200 words in memory. Each word comprised 11 bits. The instruction set of the machine was very limited. See Digital Computer Newsletter, Office of Naval Research Vol. 9 (1).

  7. 7.

    The research literature on Weizmann is rich and extensive and we rely here on that wealth of works. See, e.g. Cohen and Chazan (2016, 379–383, 421–434), Fischer (1994, 287–231), Golani and Reinharz (2019 (forthcoming)), Reinharz 1993, Rose (2015 [1987]), Weisgal (1971). Only in relation with certain points of particular interest, we provide below more specific references to this secondary literature.

  8. 8.

    Weizmann, “Speech at the Opening Ceremony of the Hebrew University, Apr. 1, 1925”. Quoted in Katz and Heyd (1997, 319–322).

  9. 9.

    Magnes to Weizmann, Oct. 24, 1928. Quoted in Parzen (1970, 187–213).

  10. 10.

    The term “Yishuv” was an accepted term to refer to the Jewish community in Palestine, since the turn of the twentieth century and before the establishment of the State of Israel.

  11. 11.

    Original in Hebrew. Unless otherwise stated, all translations from Hebrew are by the authors.

  12. 12.

    Weizmann to Einstein, May 21, 1931 (LPCW Series A, Vol. 15, Letter 152).

  13. 13.

    See, for example, www.manchesterjewishstudies.org/manchester-school/ (Retrieved Feb. 22, 2019).

  14. 14.

    Weizmann, “Speech at the Opening Ceremony of Daniel Sieff Research Institute, Rehovot, Apr. 3, 1934” (LPCW, Series B, Vol. 2, Doc. 10.).

  15. 15.

    As a matter of fact, some leading figures in the Hebrew University held political views that were far apart from the mainstream Zionist movement in Palestine, concerning the future of the relations between Jews and the local Arab population. Many of them were associated with the small but well-known Brit Shalom (“covenant of peace”) movement, that supported the cause of a peaceful coexistence between Arabs and Jews, at the price of Zionism renouncing the wish to create a Jewish state. The group included, among others, Magnes, the Kabbala researcher Gerschom Shalom (1897–1982), the philosophers Martin Buber (1878–1965) and Shmuel Hugo Bergmann (1883–1675), and the educator Akiva Ernst Simon (1900–1988). See Keidar (1976), Kotzin (2010). Einstein consistently expressed his sympathies for the ideas of this group. See Rosenkranz (2011, 215–227).

  16. 16.

    Weisgal, “Report by the Chairman of the Executive Council for the Period from November 2, 1949 to Jun. 30, 1952 (draft)” (WIA 12–90–17).

  17. 17.

    Weisgal, “Report to the Board of Directors of the American Committee and to Committees in Other Countries for the Weizmann Institute for the Period of 1944–1949” (WIA).

  18. 18.

    Bergmann, A Decade of Scientific Pioneering. DAVAR Nov. 11, 1944 (Hebrew).

  19. 19.

    Weizmann to Bergman, Oct. 8, 1946 (CWA 18–2695).

  20. 20.

    Bergmann, “The achievements of Israeli science,” DAVAR Apr. 4, 1958, 23. (Hebrew).

  21. 21.

    Weisgal, “Report by the Chairman of the Executive Council for the Period from November 2, 1949 to Jun. 30, 1952 (draft)”; (WIA 12–90–17).

  22. 22.

    WIS, “Scientific Activity Report 1953,” (WIA).

  23. 23.

    Weisgal, “Report by the Chairman of the Executive Council for the Period from November 2, 1949 to Jun. 30, 1952 (draft)” (WIA 12–90–17).

  24. 24.

    Weisgal, “Report by the Chairman of the Executive Council for the Period from November 2, 1949 to Jun. 30, 1952” (draft) (WIA 12–90–17).

  25. 25.

    Weizmann to Weisgal, Jul. 30, 1948 (LPCW, Series A, Vol. 22, letter 238).

  26. 26.

    Kaufman, Edmund I.; Stone, D. Dewey; Levine, Harry; Weisgal, Meyer, Second annual report (WIA 24–76–6).

  27. 27.

    Weizmann, “Speech in the Dedication Ceremony of WIS,” Nov. 2, 1949. Quoted in Rose (2015, Kindle Locations 9259–9264).

  28. 28.

    WIS, “Scientific Activity Report 1949” (WIA).

  29. 29.

    WIS, “Scientific Activity Report 1955” (WIA).

  30. 30.

    Lee Segel, Conversation with Pekeris, Feb. 24, 1987 (HMF).

  31. 31.

    Pekeris to Ettlinger (University of Texas), Dec. 13, 1946 (CPA).

  32. 32.

    Frank Aydelotte (the IAS director) to LCDR, Daniel F. Rex of the Office of Naval Research, 8.5.1946 Quoted in Harper (2008, 103).

  33. 33.

    Rubinoff reported that “Pekeris in fact was a rather close friend of Johnny von Neumann’s” (Rubinoff, Interview by Richard R. Mertz, May 17, 1971, (SOVA,1969–1973, 1977). (https://sova.si.edu/record/SIA.FA06-010?s=0&n=10&t=C&q=oral+history&i=0) A year before his death, von Neumann wrote to Pekeris: “I am really touched by the signs of true friendship that you are giving me”. (von Neumann to Pekeris, Feb 24 1956 (CPA)).

  34. 34.

    Lee Segel, Conversation with Pekeris, Feb. 24, 1987 (HMF).

  35. 35.

    Pekeris to Leon Roth, Mar. 13, 1945 (WIA 3–96–98).

  36. 36.

    Farkas Adalbert to David Werner Senator, Sep. 20, 1944 (HUA—165 Pekeris).

  37. 37.

    Paul S. Epstein to Leon Roth, Apr. 20, 1945 (HUA—165 Pekeris).

  38. 38.

    Michael Fekete to Pekeris, Oct. 10, 1945 (HUA—165 Pekeris).

  39. 39.

    Bergmann to Weizmann, Jun. 22, 1945 1945 (CWA—27–2590).

  40. 40.

    Kaufman, Edmund I.; Stone, D. Dewey; Levine, Harry; Weisgal, Meyer, Second annual report (WIA 24–76–6); Weisgal, Report to the Board of Directors of the American Committee and to Committees in Other Countries for the Weizmann Institute for the Period of 1944–1949, 10 (WIA). In this report, Pekeris is formally described as head of the DAM.

  41. 41.

    Pekeris knew about Mark I (ASCC) in Harvard as well as RCA and Bell Labs efforts.

  42. 42.

    Pekeris to Leon Roth, Mar. 13, 1945 (WIA 3–96–98).

  43. 43.

    Estrin, Interviewed by Mapstone, Robina, 15 Jun. 1973. (Smithsonian, Computer Oral History Collection #96, Box 6, Folder 12).

  44. 44.

    WIS, “Scientific Activity Report 1953,” 37–38 (WIA).

  45. 45.

    Theodor von Karman (1881–1963) was a Hungarian-born, German-educated, American research engineer, best known for his pioneering work in aeronautics. During the 1940s and the 1950s he was involved in establishing the department of aeronautics engineering department at the Technion, Haifa. Singer, J. History, Faculty of Aerospace Engineering. 2006. http://aerospace.technion.ac.il/department/history (accessed Feb. 18, 2018).

  46. 46.

    SCM held on Aug. 12, 1968 (CPA).

  47. 47.

    Weisgal to Pekeris, Nov. 13, 1947 (WIA 6–74–24). A department of “pure mathematics” was established at the Institute only in 1969.

  48. 48.

    “Annual Meeting of the American Committee of Weizmann Institute of Science,” Dec. 8, 1948 (WIA 6–74–24); D. Ben-Gurion, Diary, Sep. 9, 1948, (BGA); (Freeman 2004).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Lester and Sally Entin Faculty of Humanities, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

    Leo Corry

  2. Cohn Institute for History and Philosophy of Science, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

    Raya Leviathan

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  1. Leo Corry
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Corry, L., Leviathan, R. (2019). Creating a Top-Rated Scientific Institution in Rehovot at the Dawn of the Digital Age. In: WEIZAC: An Israeli Pioneering Adventure in Electronic Computing (1945–1963). SpringerBriefs in History of Science and Technology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-25734-7_2

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