IP: SF IPers -- LECTURE: "Vigilance and Vacuum Tubes: The SAGE

[Dave Farber <farber () cis upenn edu>]

                 Bay Area Computer History Perspectives
                                   and
                    The Computer Museum History Center
                                 present:


           "Vigilance and Vacuum Tubes: The SAGE System, 1956-63"


                              5:30 - 7:00 PM
                             Tuesday, May 19
                    The Computer Museum History Center
                              Building 126
                             Moffett Field
                         Mountain View, CA 94035




VIGILANCE AND VACUUM TUBES: THE SAGE SYSTEM, 1956-1963.
In 1963, the last of 22 SAGE command centers was completed by contractors
IBM, Western Electric, The RAND Corporation, and Burroughs. At a cost of $8
billion (1964 dollars), this vastly complex technological system, an
outgrowth of MIT Lincoln Labs' Whirlwind II computer, represented the state of
the art in strategic doctrine and computer systems design.  Each one of the
22 SAGE command centers used over 49,000 vacuum tubes, weighed 250 tons,
and consumed 3,000,000 watts of power.


The SAGE system linked these command centers into a technopolitical
"shield" against Soviet strategic bomber attack.  From a stark social
context of high Cold War tensions emerged impressive technical advances in
hardware and software systems design, real-time control, and air traffic
monitoring.


Advances such as the light gun, modems, duplex CPUs, multiprocessing, A/D
and D/A conversion techniques, as well as networking arose as ancillary
technologies of SAGE development.  But did SAGE really work as advertised?
Should we care?  This lecture reflects on these questions, SAGE's
context, and its technical spinoffs.


The lecture takes place in front of 400 square feet of actual SAGE
hardware, including Weapons Director and Intercept Technician consoles!  This
equipment is from the last functioning SAGE center in North Bay, Ontario
(Canada), decommissioned in 1982. The USAF SAGE Film "In Your Defense"
will also be shown.  "I like Ike" buttons optional.


For more information, including photos and audio soundtracks of the SAGE
system,  please visit our new Computer History Lecture Series web site at:
http://www.computerhistory.org/sage




The Speakers:
This lecture's speakers represent a variety of perspectives, from the
history of technology, to hardware and software systems engineering:


Les Earnest: Senior Research Scientist Emeritus, Stanford University, Project
Engineer and System Designer, SAGE system hardware.  Founding President,
Imagen Corporation; former Associate Chairman, Stanford University
Computer Science Department; Executive Officer, Stanford AI Lab; Department
Head, Information Systems Dept, MITRE Corporation; Member, Technical Staff,
MIT Lincoln Laboratory... and inventor of the original (DEC-10/20) FINGER
program!


James Wong:  Computer Systems Engineer, Burroughs Corporation; Unisys
Corporation; Project Engineer on SAGE system software for The RAND
Corporation 1955-1963; Team Leader, System Development Corporation (SDC),
Lincoln Laboratory, SAGE and Project "465-L." Mathematician and programmer
for the IBM CPC, 701, and RAND Johnniac. Wong is retired and currently
volunteers as an instructor in Mathematics with the Learning Disabled
Program at Foothill College.


Paul Edwards: Senior Research Scholar and Lecturer, Program in Science,
Technology & Society, Stanford University; author of "The Closed World:
Computers and the Politics of Discourse in Cold War America."  Edwards has
also authored dozens of articles on the history of computing and has
held visiting professorships at Stanford, Cornell, the University of
Michigan and UC - Santa Cruz. His next book is entitled: "The World in a
Machine:Computer Models, Data Networks, and Global Atmospheric Politics."
Edwards will be making a 30-minute presentation.




                        These talks are sponsored by
                      The Computer Museum History Center
                                    and
                              Sun Microsystems


                                     ***


Note: The 10th Annual Computer Bowl, The Computer Museum's yearly quiz show
for the technically astute, is being broadcast this week. This year's
co-host was John Ratzenberger, "Cliff Claven." from the television show
"Cheers!" For listings in your area, check:
http://www.cmptv.com/computerchronicles/showlist.html.   More info about
the broadcast is also available at: http://www.cmptv.com/




                                     ***


                                 Directions:


> From Highway 101 in Mountain View, take the Moffett Field exit (ignore any
exits for Moffett Blvd.). You will come immediately up to the Moffett Field
main gate. When stopped, kindly inform the guard that you are attending the
Computer history talk.


If requested, you may be required to park to the right side of the gate, in
the visitor's parking area, and go into the Visitor Badging office to get
your reserved badge and further directions.


You may obtain a map of Moffett Field from our Computer History Lecture web
site: http://www.computerhistory.org/sage/amesmap.html or by faxing a
request to us at: 650 604 2594.




                               ***NOTE***


          ADVANCE CONFIRMATION IS REQUIRED for entry to Moffett Field.


                If you plan to attend, please respond via e-mail.
                           You may also RSVP by voice
                      by calling Cynthia at 650 604 2579
                                  
                   Please indicate if you are a US citizen
               and bring a Driver's License for identification.
                                  
                If not a US citizen, do you have a green card?


           If so, please indicate the country you are from in your RSVP
            and please bring your green card with you to Moffett Field.
                                      
                If you do not have a green card, please see below.


                                        ***


                          Persons without a green card:


If you are a foreign national, without a green card, please e-mail us
(chc () tcm org) your name name, country of origin, citizenship and please
bring your passport.


                You must have your passport to enter on base.
                                  
                                  
If you are a citizen of one of the designated countries below, without a
green card, we regret that we will not have time to process your base pass
for this talk.


                 We appreciate your understanding.
                                  
                                  
                          (Partial list)
                              China
                              Cuba
                              India
                              Isreal
                            Lebanon
                          North Korea
                          Saudi Arabia
                             Serbia
                          South Africa
                             Taiwan
                           Yugoslavia


                                        ***





--
Dag Spicer
Manager, Historical Collections
The Computer Museum History Center
Moffett Federal Airfield
Mountain View, CA  94035


Offices: Building T12-A
Exhibit Area: Building 126


Tel: +1 650 604 2578
Fax: +1 650 604 2594
E-m: spicer () tcm org
WWW: http://www.tcm.org/history/


<spicer () tcm org>  PGP: 15E31235 (E6ECDF74 349D1667 260759AD 7D04C178)


SV/T12