Images(2)

Puzzle

Object number2016.96.22 a-e

Made by James F. Sutherland

Date1994

MediumPlastic; Paper; Ink

Credit LineGift of James Sutherland

DescriptionBlock puzzle game consisting of four colored plastic blocks and puzzle solution page.DimensionsHeight x Width x Depth (a): 1.25 × 1.25 × 1.25 in. (3.2 × 3.2 × 3.2 cm)
Height x Width x Depth (b): 1.25 × 1.25 × 1.25 in. (3.2 × 3.2 × 3.2 cm)
Height x Width x Depth (c): 1.25 × 1.25 × 1.25 in. (3.2 × 3.2 × 3.2 cm)
Height x Width x Depth (d): 1.25 × 1.25 × 1.25 in. (3.2 × 3.2 × 3.2 cm)
Height x Width (e): 11 × 8.5 in. (27.9 × 21.6 cm)
Marks(e)
Front has printed black text including "INSTANT.BAS Program / (written by Jim Sutherland - 1994) / Based on a 1968 ECHO-IV algorithm, this BASIC program solves the'INSTANT INSANITY' / block puzzle. The blocks are correctly oriented when each of the four sides simultaneously / display four different colors..."
Historical Notes"Instant Insanity" block puzzle game with solution. Part of a collection of materials that document the early development of computer technology at Westinghouse where donor James Sutherland was an engineer. Sutherland was a design engineer for computers at Westinghouse in the 1960s. He earned a degree in electrical engineering, served in the United States Air Force, and then began to work for Westinghouse in 1959. He worked in the logic group and designed the Control and Indexing Units for the Westinghouse PRODAC-IV (Programmed Digital Automatic Controller). The computer used NOR logic elements, developed by Westinghouse’s Buffalo plant, to run. With permission Jim took parts of these computers home and eventually built a home computer called ECHO IV (Electronic Home Computing Operator), it is now in The Computer Museum in Boston. ECHO IV was recognized as the first home computer by the Annals of Computing History and The Computer Museum in Boston.

Previous owner James F. Sutherland

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