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'''[[Main Page|Home]] * [[People]] * John Birmingham'''
[[FILE:JohnBirmingham.JPG|border|right|thumb|link=http://www.chilton-computing.org.uk/gallery/ral/slide28.htm|John Birmingham <ref>[http://www.chilton-computing.org.uk/gallery/ral/slide28.htm Slide 28: 23.08.74 to 01.11.74] from [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rutherford_Appleton_Laboratory Rutherford's] Photographic Section for the [[Atlas Computer Laboratory]]</ref> ]]
'''John A. Birmingham''',<br/>
a British computer scientist and programmer from [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_Energy_Research_Establishment Harwell Atomic Energy Research Establishment], near [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harwell,_Oxfordshire Harwell, Oxfordshire], in the neighborhood of [[Atlas Computer Laboratory]], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilton,_Oxfordshire Chilton]. In the early 70s, John Birmingham became interested in chess programming, inspired by the work of [[Peter Kent]] from [[Atlas Computer Laboratory|Atlas]], who already inproved [[Alex Bell|Alex Bell's]] program, which was written in [[Algol]]. He translated the program, plus all the new improvements, into [[PL 1|PL/l]] and also extended the depth of the search. In 1973 [[Alex Bell]] joined the team to develop the chess playing program '''M'''inimax '''a'''lgorithm Te'''ster''', short [[Master]], which competed the first three [[World Computer Chess Championship|World Computer Chess Championships]] <ref>[https://www.game-ai-forum.org/icga-tournaments/program.php?id=46 Master's ICGA Tournaments]</ref>, from 1975 with Birmingham <ref>[https://www.game-ai-forum.org/icga-tournaments/person.php?id=440 John Birmingham's ICGA Tournaments]</ref> and Kent as sole authors. Both authors further improved Master, and as scientists, talked about their secrets in tree searching techniques and [[Mate at a Glance]] during the first two [[Conferences|Advances in Computer Chess]] conferences, [[John Birmingham#Publications|published]] as Proceedings by [[Mike Clarke]], and reprinted in [[David Levy|David Levy's]] [[Computer Chess Compendium]].
=Quotes=
[[Alex Bell]] about John Birmingham <ref>[[Alex Bell]] ('''1978'''). ''[http://www.chilton-computing.org.uk/acl/applications/cocoa/p008.htm MASTER at IFIPS]''. Excerpt from: The Machine Plays Chess? from [[Atlas Computer Laboratory]], hosted by [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rutherford_Appleton_Laboratory Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL)]</ref>:
This change from centre control to actively hunting the opponent's king was very noticeable. At this point a very energetic programmer from Harwell Atomic Energy Research Establishment, John Birmingham, became interested. He translated the program, plus all the new improvements, into [[PL 1|PL/l]] in about 6 weeks of his spare time and also extended the depth of the search. I would say at this point that England at last had a program comparable to MACHACK and we ambitiously christened it MASTER-Minimax Algorithm teSTER; if nothing else we had the patent on a good name.
<span id="Publications"></span>
=Selected Publications=
<ref>[http://ilk.uvt.nl/icga/journal/docs/References.pdf ICGA Reference Database (pdf)]</ref>
* [[John Birmingham]], [[Peter Kent]] ('''1977'''). ''Tree-searching and tree-pruning techniques''. [[Advances in Computer Chess 1]], (Ed. [[Mike Clarke|M.R.B. Clarke]]), pp. 89–107. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh. ISBN 0-852-24292-1. reprinted in [[Computer Chess Compendium]] by [[David Levy|D.N.L. Levy]] (ed.), pp. 123-128
* [[John Birmingham]], [[Peter Kent]] <ref>In the ICGA Database John Birmingham is mentioned as sole author</ref> ('''1980'''). ''Mate at a Glance.'' [[Advances in Computer Chess 2]], (Ed. [[Mike Clarke|M.R.B. Clarke]]), pp. 122–130. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh. ISBN 0-85224-377-4. reprinted in [[Computer Chess Compendium]] by [[David Levy|D.N.L. Levy]] (ed.), pp. 258-265
=External Links=
* [https://www.game-ai-forum.org/icga-tournaments/person.php?id=440 John Birmingham's ICGA Tournaments]
=References=
<references />
'''[[People|Up one level]]'''
[[FILE:JohnBirmingham.JPG|border|right|thumb|link=http://www.chilton-computing.org.uk/gallery/ral/slide28.htm|John Birmingham <ref>[http://www.chilton-computing.org.uk/gallery/ral/slide28.htm Slide 28: 23.08.74 to 01.11.74] from [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rutherford_Appleton_Laboratory Rutherford's] Photographic Section for the [[Atlas Computer Laboratory]]</ref> ]]
'''John A. Birmingham''',<br/>
a British computer scientist and programmer from [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atomic_Energy_Research_Establishment Harwell Atomic Energy Research Establishment], near [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harwell,_Oxfordshire Harwell, Oxfordshire], in the neighborhood of [[Atlas Computer Laboratory]], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chilton,_Oxfordshire Chilton]. In the early 70s, John Birmingham became interested in chess programming, inspired by the work of [[Peter Kent]] from [[Atlas Computer Laboratory|Atlas]], who already inproved [[Alex Bell|Alex Bell's]] program, which was written in [[Algol]]. He translated the program, plus all the new improvements, into [[PL 1|PL/l]] and also extended the depth of the search. In 1973 [[Alex Bell]] joined the team to develop the chess playing program '''M'''inimax '''a'''lgorithm Te'''ster''', short [[Master]], which competed the first three [[World Computer Chess Championship|World Computer Chess Championships]] <ref>[https://www.game-ai-forum.org/icga-tournaments/program.php?id=46 Master's ICGA Tournaments]</ref>, from 1975 with Birmingham <ref>[https://www.game-ai-forum.org/icga-tournaments/person.php?id=440 John Birmingham's ICGA Tournaments]</ref> and Kent as sole authors. Both authors further improved Master, and as scientists, talked about their secrets in tree searching techniques and [[Mate at a Glance]] during the first two [[Conferences|Advances in Computer Chess]] conferences, [[John Birmingham#Publications|published]] as Proceedings by [[Mike Clarke]], and reprinted in [[David Levy|David Levy's]] [[Computer Chess Compendium]].
=Quotes=
[[Alex Bell]] about John Birmingham <ref>[[Alex Bell]] ('''1978'''). ''[http://www.chilton-computing.org.uk/acl/applications/cocoa/p008.htm MASTER at IFIPS]''. Excerpt from: The Machine Plays Chess? from [[Atlas Computer Laboratory]], hosted by [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rutherford_Appleton_Laboratory Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL)]</ref>:
This change from centre control to actively hunting the opponent's king was very noticeable. At this point a very energetic programmer from Harwell Atomic Energy Research Establishment, John Birmingham, became interested. He translated the program, plus all the new improvements, into [[PL 1|PL/l]] in about 6 weeks of his spare time and also extended the depth of the search. I would say at this point that England at last had a program comparable to MACHACK and we ambitiously christened it MASTER-Minimax Algorithm teSTER; if nothing else we had the patent on a good name.
<span id="Publications"></span>
=Selected Publications=
<ref>[http://ilk.uvt.nl/icga/journal/docs/References.pdf ICGA Reference Database (pdf)]</ref>
* [[John Birmingham]], [[Peter Kent]] ('''1977'''). ''Tree-searching and tree-pruning techniques''. [[Advances in Computer Chess 1]], (Ed. [[Mike Clarke|M.R.B. Clarke]]), pp. 89–107. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh. ISBN 0-852-24292-1. reprinted in [[Computer Chess Compendium]] by [[David Levy|D.N.L. Levy]] (ed.), pp. 123-128
* [[John Birmingham]], [[Peter Kent]] <ref>In the ICGA Database John Birmingham is mentioned as sole author</ref> ('''1980'''). ''Mate at a Glance.'' [[Advances in Computer Chess 2]], (Ed. [[Mike Clarke|M.R.B. Clarke]]), pp. 122–130. Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh. ISBN 0-85224-377-4. reprinted in [[Computer Chess Compendium]] by [[David Levy|D.N.L. Levy]] (ed.), pp. 258-265
=External Links=
* [https://www.game-ai-forum.org/icga-tournaments/person.php?id=440 John Birmingham's ICGA Tournaments]
=References=
<references />
'''[[People|Up one level]]'''
