Difference between revisions of "Bill Gosper"

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(Created page with "'''Home * People * Bill Gosper''' File:Bill_Gosper_2006.jpg|border|right|thumb|Bill Gosper 2006 <ref>Mathematician Bill Gosper in March, 2006 at the [http...")
 
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'''Ralph William (Bill) Gosper, Jr.''',
 
'''Ralph William (Bill) Gosper, Jr.''',
an American mathematician and computer scientist, along with [[Richard Greenblatt]] considered the co-founder of the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hacker_culture hacker] community <ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hackers:_Heroes_of_the_Computer_Revolution Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution]</ref>.
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an American mathematician and computer scientist, along with [[Richard Greenblatt]] considered the co-founder of the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hacker_culture hacker] community <ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hackers:_Heroes_of_the_Computer_Revolution Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution]</ref>. In the 60s, affiliated with [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]], he worked for [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_MAC%7CProject Project MAC] (Machine-Aided Cognition), where his contributions to [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computational_mathematics computational mathematics] and [[Bit-Twiddling]] including [[#HAKMEM|HAKMEM]] and [[Lisp#Maclisp|Maclisp]]. He helped Greenblatt with his chess program [[Mac Hack|Mac Hack VI]], and operated the [[PDP-6]] when [[Mac Hack#RobertQ|Robert Q]] played its first tournament game versus Carl Wagner.  
  
In the 60s, affiliated with [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology|MIT]], he worked for [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project_MAC%7CProject Project MAC] (Machine-Aided Cognition), where his contributions to [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computational_mathematics computational mathematics] and [[Bit-Twiddling]] including [[#HAKMEM|HAKMEM]] and [[Lisp#Maclisp|Maclisp]]. He helped Greenblatt with his chess program [[Mac Hack|Mac Hack VI]], and operated the [[PDP-6]] when [[Mac Hack#RobertQ|Robert Q]] played its first tournament game versus Carl Wagner. In the 70s, Bill Gosper moved to [[Stanford University]] for some years, where he lectured and helped [[Donald Knuth]] to write volume II of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Art_of_Computer_Programming The Art of Computer Programming]. He has worked at or consulted for [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PARC_%28company%29 Xerox PARC], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symbolics Symbolics], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolfram_Research Wolfram Research], the [[Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory]], and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macsyma Macsyma] <ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Gosper Bill Gosper from Wikipedia]</ref>. Bill Gosper created numerous [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Packing_problem packing problem] puzzles such as the ''Twubblesome Twelve'' <ref>[http://gosper.org/ Twubblesome Twelve - a difficult puzzle] by Bill Gosper</ref>, and was interested in the [[John H. Conway|Conway's]] [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conway%27s_Game_of_Life|Game of Life]], where he found the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_%28cellular_automaton%29|Glider Gun]] and originated the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hashlife|Hashlife]] algorithm to speed up the computation of Life patterns  <ref>[http://www-users.cs.york.ac.uk/~jowen/hashlife.html Gosper's Algorithm (Hashlife) explained]</ref>.
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In the 70s, Bill Gosper moved to [[Stanford University]] for some years, where he lectured and helped [[Donald Knuth]] to write volume II of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Art_of_Computer_Programming The Art of Computer Programming]. He has worked at or consulted for [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PARC_%28company%29 Xerox PARC], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symbolics Symbolics], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolfram_Research Wolfram Research], the [[Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory]], and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macsyma Macsyma] <ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Gosper Bill Gosper from Wikipedia]</ref>. Bill Gosper created numerous [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Packing_problem packing problem] puzzles such as the ''Twubblesome Twelve'' <ref>[http://gosper.org/ Twubblesome Twelve - a difficult puzzle] by Bill Gosper</ref>, and was interested in the [[John H. Conway|Conway's]] [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conway%27s_Game_of_Life|Game of Life]], where he found the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_%28cellular_automaton%29|Glider Gun]] and originated the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hashlife|Hashlife]] algorithm to speed up the computation of Life patterns  <ref>[http://www-users.cs.york.ac.uk/~jowen/hashlife.html Gosper's Algorithm (Hashlife) explained]</ref>.
  
 
=Robert Q=  
 
=Robert Q=  
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==<span id="HAKMEM70"></span>HAKMEM 70==
 
==<span id="HAKMEM70"></span>HAKMEM 70==
HAKMEM 70 <ref>[http://home.pipeline.com/~hbaker1/hakmem/games.html#item70 HAKMEM - GAMES: ITEM 70]</ref>, A neat chess problem, swiped from ''Chess for Fun and Chess for Blood'', by [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Lasker Edward Lasker] <ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Lasker Edward Lasker] ('''1942,1962''') ''Chess for Fun and Chess for Blood''. Dover Publications; 2 Edition, ISBN-13: 978-0486201467, [http://www.amazon.com/Chess-Fun-Blood-Edward-Lasker/dp/0486201465 amazon]</ref>. White mates in three moves:
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HAKMEM 70 <ref>[http://home.pipeline.com/~hbaker1/hakmem/games.html#item70 HAKMEM - GAMES: ITEM 70]</ref>, A neat chess problem, swiped from ''Chess for Fun and Chess for Blood'', by [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Lasker Edward Lasker] <ref>[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Lasker Edward Lasker] ('''1942,1962''') ''Chess for Fun and Chess for Blood''. Dover Publications; 2 Edition, ISBN-13: 978-0486201467, [http://www.amazon.com/Chess-Fun-Blood-Edward-Lasker/dp/0486201465 amazon]</ref>. White mates in three moves <ref>1.g8=N b5 2.Ne7 Kxb4 3.Nc6#</ref>:
  
 
<fentt border="double" style="font-size:24pt>5B2/6P1/1p6/8/1N6/kP6/2K5/8</fentt>
 
<fentt border="double" style="font-size:24pt>5B2/6P1/1p6/8/1N6/kP6/2K5/8</fentt>

Revision as of 22:22, 11 April 2018

Home * People * Bill Gosper

Bill Gosper 2006 [1]

Ralph William (Bill) Gosper, Jr., an American mathematician and computer scientist, along with Richard Greenblatt considered the co-founder of the hacker community [2]. In the 60s, affiliated with MIT, he worked for Project MAC (Machine-Aided Cognition), where his contributions to computational mathematics and Bit-Twiddling including HAKMEM and Maclisp. He helped Greenblatt with his chess program Mac Hack VI, and operated the PDP-6 when Robert Q played its first tournament game versus Carl Wagner.

In the 70s, Bill Gosper moved to Stanford University for some years, where he lectured and helped Donald Knuth to write volume II of The Art of Computer Programming. He has worked at or consulted for Xerox PARC, Symbolics, Wolfram Research, the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and Macsyma [3]. Bill Gosper created numerous packing problem puzzles such as the Twubblesome Twelve [4], and was interested in the Conway's of Life], where he found the Gun] and originated the [1]] algorithm to speed up the computation of Life patterns [5].

Robert Q

RobertQ1967.JPG

Allen Moulton and R. William Gosper operating "Robert Q" on a PDP-6 [6]

HAKMEM

HAKMEM, alternatively known as AI Memo 239, is a February 1972 "memo" (technical report) of the MIT AI Lab by Gosper et al. that describes a wide variety of hacks, primarily useful and clever algorithms [7], and even a chess position [8] [9]. A few samples, referred elsewhere:

HAKMEM 70

HAKMEM 70 [10], A neat chess problem, swiped from Chess for Fun and Chess for Blood, by Edward Lasker [11]. White mates in three moves [12]:

    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
       
       
       
        
       
      
       
        
     ♗  
      ♙ 
 ♟      
        
 ♘      
♚♙      
  ♔     
        

5B2/6P1/1p6/8/1N6/kP6/2K5/8 w - -

HAKMEM 169

HAKMEM 169, to count the ones in a PDP-6/PDP-10 36-bit word, written in Assembly [13] [14]:

   LDB   B,[014300,,A]     ;or MOVE B,A then LSH B,-1
   AND   B,[333333,,333333]
   SUB   A,B
   LSH   B,-1
   AND   B,[333333,,333333]
   SUBB  A,B               ;each octal digit is replaced by number of 1's in it
   LSH   B,-3
   ADD   A,B
   AND   A,[070707,,070707]
   IDIVI A,77              ;casting out 63.'s

HAKMEM 175

HAKMEM 175 - next higher number with the same number of one bits (Snoob), by Bill Gosper, PDP-6 Assembly [15]:

   MOVE  B,A
   MOVN  C,B
   AND   C,B
   ADD   A,C
   MOVE  D,A
   XOR   D,B
   LSH   D,-2
   IDIVM D,C
   IOR   A,C

Gosper's Glider Gun

Gospers glider gun.gif

Gosper's Glider Gun in action — a variation of Conway's Game of Life [16]

See also

Selected Publications

External Links

R. William Gosper
Rep-tiles
HAKMEMC -- HAKMEM Programming hacks in C by Alan Mycroft

References

  1. Mathematician Bill Gosper in March, 2006 at the Seventh Gathering for Gardner (G4G7) in Atlanta, Georgia, March 16, 2006, Photographer Thane Plambeck
  2. Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution
  3. Bill Gosper from Wikipedia
  4. Twubblesome Twelve - a difficult puzzle by Bill Gosper
  5. Gosper's Algorithm (Hashlife) explained
  6. MIT Computer Loses to Human in Chess. Sun Journal (Lewiston), January 23, 1967, Google News
  7. HAKMEM from Wikipedia
  8. Michael Beeler, Bill Gosper, Rich Schroeppel (1972). HAKMEM, Memo 239. Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  9. HAKMEMC -- HAKMEM Programming hacks in C by Alan Mycroft
  10. HAKMEM - GAMES: ITEM 70
  11. Edward Lasker (1942,1962) Chess for Fun and Chess for Blood. Dover Publications; 2 Edition, ISBN-13: 978-0486201467, amazon
  12. 1.g8=N b5 2.Ne7 Kxb4 3.Nc6#
  13. HAKMEM 169 by Gosper, Mann, Lenard, (Root and Mann), HAKMEM
  14. PDP-10 Machine Language
  15. HAKMEM 175 by Bill Gosper
  16. Bill Gosper's Glider Gun in action — a variation of Conway's Game of Life. This image was made by using Life32 v2.15 beta by Johan G. Bontes, 2005, Gun (cellular automaton) from Wikipedia
  17. Web-available by Henry Baker
  18. Gosper's algorithm from Wikipedia

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