History of Computing Collection: Ministry of Supply Collection

  • Reference
    • GB 133 NAHC/MIS
  • Dates of Creation
    • 1943-1957
  • Language of Material
    • English
  • Physical Description
    • 10 items
  • Location
    • Collection available at University Archive and Records Centre, main University Library.

Scope and Content

Comprises:

  • D1, A. Schendel, Volkenrode Translation, Report No. MOS143. ([?1943];
  • D2, Symposium on Information Theory. Report of Proceedings. September 1950;
  • D3, C.A. Reiners,Survey of Computing Facilities in the UK, Report No.13/53, September 1953;
  • D4, IPM List of Controlled Automatic Computers as at Winter 1952/53, TIB/T4338, May 1954;
  • D5, H. Rutishauser, A. Speiser and E. Stiefel, Programme Controlled Digital Computers (Electronic Calculating Machines), TIB/T4322, July 1954;
  • D6, Catalogue of the MOS Computing and Data Reduction Library, Directorate of Weapons Research (Defence), May 1955;
  • D7, Catalogue of the MOS Computing and Data Reduction Library, Directorate of Weapons Research (Defence) May 1955 May 1957;
  • D8, WR(D) Computing and Data Reduction Abstracts, No.9, Directorate of Weapon Research (Defence), January 1956;
  • D9, WR(D) Computing and Data Reduction Abstracts, No.10, Directorate of Weapon Research (Defence), March 1956;
  • D10, R. Sauer and H. Posch, Integrating Machine for ordinary differential equations, SR7 (Technical Records), undated.

Administrative / Biographical History

The Ministry of Supply was responsible for the setting up of a Mathematics Division in the National Physical Laboratory in 1945. This division saw the development of the stored-program computer project MOSAIC (Ministry of Supply Automatic Integrator and Computer), implemented between 1947 and 1954. This project was used, in part, for processing radar tracking data in experiments on aircraft.

Access Information

The collection is open to any accredited reader.

Note

Description compiled by Jo Klett, project archivist, with reference to S.H. Lavington, Early British Computers (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1980), pp. 53-4.