Search

Data are presented which show the execution characteristics of two types of commonly used programs in a large-scale, time-shared computer system. A software monitoring facility built into the supervisor was used for data collection during normal system operation. These data were analyzed, and results of this analysis are presented for a Fortran compiler and an interactive line file editor. Probability distribution functions and other data are given for such things as CPU intervals, I/O intervals, and the number of such intervals during execution. Empirical distributions are compared with simple theoretical distributions (exponential, hyperexponential, and geometric). Other data show paging characteristics of tasks as a function of the number of pages those tasks have in core. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers news briefs on the computing field. A grant of $48,200 has been awarded by the National Science Foundation to Washington State University to support a Conference on Computers in the Undergraduate Curriculum. Ruth Davis was one of five recipients of the 1973 Rockefeller Public Service Awards. A new edition of the brochure booklet "Facts on Computer Careers" is available from the American Federation of Information Processing Societies Inc.

A data definition language is a declarative computer language for specifying data structures. Most data definition languages concentrate on the declaration of logical data structures with little concern for how these structures are physically realized on a computer system. However, the need for data definition languages which describe both the logical and physical aspects of data is increasingly apparent. Such languages will be a key element in the translation of data between computer systems, as well as in advanced data management systems and distributed data bases. This paper reviews past work in the data definition language for describing both logical and physical aspects of data. Applications of these "generalized" data definition languages are also discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information about events related to the computer industry. The Association of Computing Machinery (ACM) European Chapters will hold the International Computing Symposium 1973 in Davos, Switzerland. The keynote address at the opening session on Tuesday morning at 9:30 a.m. will he given by ACM President Anthony Ralston. The Seventh Annual Symposium on the Interface between Computer Science and Statistics will be held at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, during October 18-19. The Second Annual Computer Science Conference, sponsored by many U.S. and Canadian universities and industrial organizations, will be held at the Detroit Hilton, Detroit, Michigan, during 12-14 February, 1974. The Peoples Republic of China will host a trade show of the U.S. computer products in Peking, during 18-27 September. The host organization will probably be the Import-Export Machine Corp., the Chinese organization responsible for importation of electronic machinery.

A virtual memory computer system with a fast buffer (cache) memory between primary memory and the central processing unit is considered. The optimal distribution it a program between the buffer and primary memory is studied using the program's lifetime function. Expression for the distribution of a program which maximizes the useful fraction of the cost-time integral of primary and fast buffer storage are obtained for swapping and nonswapping buffer management policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The behavior of a computer system is largely dependent upon the algorithms employed to allocate the system resources to the processes competing for them. Recent research in time-sharing paging systems has developed the working set model for program behavior, and a resource allocation strategy based on this model has been proposed. Two implementations along these principles have been reported, but it seems that in neither case have further results been announced. This report discusses the design and implementation of a dispatcher based on the working set principle, presents data to permit analysis of its behavior, and indicates future directions of research on methods of controlling a computer system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a calendar of events in the computer industry. The Association for Computing Machinery/National Bureau of Standards Conference on Simulation of Computer Systems will be held from June 19 to 20, 1973 in Gaithersburg, Maryland. The Programming Language Festival will be held on March 6 to 8, 1973 in Amherst, Massachusetts. The 5th Annual Meeting of the Information Industry Association will be held on April 1 to 4, 1973 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The article presents information about some forthcoming conferences related to the computer industry. The Third Technical Symposium of the Special Interest Group on Computer Science Education of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) will be held at the Niel House Hotel in Columbus, Ohio, during February 22-23, 1973. A conference on Principles of Programming Languages, sponsored jointly by the ACM Special Interest Group on Automata and Computability Theory and the ACM Special Interest Group for Programming Languages, will be held at the Copley Plaza Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts, during October 1-3, 1973. A conference on Cognitive Verfahren und Systeme (Artificial Intelligence) will be held in Hamburg, German Federal Republic, during April 11-13, 1973. The Annual Meeting of the American Society for Information Science will be held at the Hilton Hotel, Los Angeles, California, during October 21-25, 1973. The First Annual Symposium of the newly formed ACM Special Interest Group on Measurement and Evaluation will be held in Palo Alto, California, during February 26-28, 1973.

Microscopic level Job stream data obtained in a production environment by an event-driven software probe is used to drive a model of a multiprogramming computer system. The CPU scheduling algorithm of the model is systematically varied. This technique, called trace-driven modeling, provides an accurate replica of a production environment for the testing of variations in the system. At the same time alterations in scheduling methods can be easily carried out in a controlled way with cause and effects relationships being isolated. The scheduling methods tested included the best possible and worst possible methods, the traditional methods of multiprogramming theory, round-robin, first-come- first-served, etc., and dynamic predictors. The relative and absolute performances of these scheduling methods are given. It is concluded that a successful CPU scheduling method must be preemptive and must prevent a given job from holding the CPU for too long a period. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the remarks of former presidents of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) on the achievements of the ACM during their tenures. When a president of the ACM comes to the end of his term of office, he passes to another the achievements and the unsolved problems of his administration and the effects of his actions continue to influence the association. According to Walter M. Carlson, president of the ACM from 1970-1972, the ACM has seen a growth among people who were as interested in the use of computing devices as they were in the design and construction of computers. The 1970 census in the U.S. indicates that nearly 300,000 men and women consider themselves professionally engaged in computer-related jobs on a full-time basis. J.H. Curtiss, president of the ACM from 1947-1948, remarked that he hopes the ACM its next 25 years it will continue to maintain its position as the principal channel of dissemination of scientific and technical advancements and of communication in the technological area to which it is dedicated.

The article presents the views of Gordon Bell, vice-president of Digital Equipment Corp., on developments in the computer industry and intercomputer communication. In the 1980s, users are expected to recognize a better interface for direct and indirect communication with their computers. Thus, the large computer population will force intercommunication and standardization among machines. The effect of minicomputers on the user population has been highly significant. Nearly all important features that minicomputers have such as floating-point and other data-type operations, paging and segmentation for better memory management and a reasonably large software library. Minicomputers are often connected to larger, more general purpose computers arranged at a higher level and thus, a hierarchy of computers can be created usually corresponding to hierarchies within the human organization. At present, programming languages are fundamentally special purpose and they solve problems within a particular context.

An overview of the current and future positions with respect to operating system performance is given. While a great deal of information and a large number of models for subsystems have been developed, gaps still exist in our knowledge. Because of the severe interactions between the various subsystems of an operating system, an overall model of the total system must be developed to be able to analyze and design the performance aspects of an operating system. Although such total system designs are exceptional today, it is projected that they will become increasingly more common and necessary in the near future. Such a design philosophy will clearly have a severe impact on the way we go about modularizing operating and computer systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Discusses some of the thinking and philosophy behind changes in the communications of the journal of "Association for Computing Machines." Logistical and administrative reasons for the intended changes; Purposes and goals of the periodical; Technical papers relevant to the computer industry that are sought by the periodical.

This article presents a list of Association of Computing Machinery chapters and chairmen in the U.S. They include the Central Pennsylvania Chapter with chairman Charles E. Hughes, the Delaware Valley Chapter with chairman Thomas Angell, the American University Student Chapter with chairman David E. Redman, and the University of Maryland Student Chapter with chairman Ira Gold.

This article offers updates on issues concerning the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM). ACM president Walter M. Carlson announced the appointment of W. L. Konigsford as chairman of the Membership Committee. A technical conference will be co-sponsored by ACM and the U.S. Department of Commerce, which will be held during a solo exhibition of U.S. computers and services at the International Trade Center in Tokyo, Japan. Anita Cochran was appointed as chairman of the ACM Chapters Committee.

The article presents news briefs concerning computer science and computer industry. The availability of the Graduate Assistantship Directory in the Computer Sciences 1970-71 is reported. The election of John Dorosk as chairman of the Joint Users Group is mentioned. The addition of new coverage as part of the expansion of the Group Insurance Program for individual Association for Computing Machinery members is revealed.

This article presents information events related to the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM). At ACM Professional Development Seminars offered during the past year, employees of Corporate Institutional Members were accorded to special discount price. The ACM Northeast Region will hold its first annual meeting on Friday, October 17, 1969, and Saturday morning, October 18, at the State University of New York at Albany. The theme of the conference will be "Programming Language Tutorials." A lecture series organized by the Johns Hopkins University and the Brookings Institution will be presented during 1969-1970 on the subject "Computers, Communications, and the Public Interest." The Second Annual ACM Symposium on Theory of Computing, sponsored by the ACM Special Interest Committee on Automata and Computability Theory, will be held at Northampton, Massachusetts, on May 4-6, 1970. A three-day meeting beginning August 31, 1970, will be held at Purdue University, emphasizing the application of computers to problems involving the interaction between structural design and other aspects of civil engineering practice.

Some of the problems of simulating discrete event systems, particularly computer systems, on a conventional digital computer are dealt with. The systems are assumed to be described as a network of interconnected sequential processes. Briefly reviewed are the common techniques used to handle such simulations when simultaneous events do not occur, can be ignored, or can be handled by simple priority rules. Following this, the problem of dealing with simultaneous events in separate processes is introduced. An abstraction of this problem is developed which admits solution for a majority of commonly encountered problems. The technique will either find a method of simulating the parallel events or report that none can be found. In some of the latter cases it is shown to be possible to find a solution by extending the information available to the solution technique, but in many cases the technique becomes computationally unfeasible when the additional information is provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A comprehensive system for transformational grammar has been designed and implemented on the IBM 360/67 computer. The system deals with the transformational model of syntax, along the lines of Chomsky's Aspects of the Theory of Syntax. The major innovations include a full, formal description of the syntax of a transformational grammar, a directed random phrase structure generator, a lexical insertion algorithm, an extended definition of analysis, and simple problem-oriented programming language in which the algorithm for application of transformations can be expressed. In this paper we present the system as a whole, first discussing the general attitudes underlying the development of the system, then outlining the system and discussing its more important special features. References are given to papers which consider some particular aspect of the system in detail. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on recent developments in the field of information technology. Hebrew University in Jerusalem has decided to install a Control Data 6400 Computer System in July 1968 for use in teaching, administrative planning, and a variety of scientific research applications. Hebrew University has an enrollment of over 10,000 students, and its schools of medicine, law, and the humanities are well known. The computer system, to be installed in the University's Computer Department, will include a Control Data 6638 Disk File, 604 Magnetic Tape Transports, and a Control Data 512 High-Speed Line Printer. A new technique which could provide instant and unique identification of human tissue types and microbes with little or no laboratory preparation is now under development at Optics Technology Inc., California. The identification methods now in use require hours and sometimes days before positive results can be obtained. The new technique employs a laser light source and a small digital computer to accomplish the same result in minutes, saving both valuable diagnostic time and the extensive laboratory facilities required.

In many recent computer system designs, hardware facilities have been provided for easing the problems of storage allocation. A method of characterizing dynamic storage allocation systems—according to the functional capabilities provided and the underlying techniques used—is presented. The basic purpose of the paper is to provide o useful perspective from which the utility of various hardware facilities may be assessed. A brief survey of storage allocation facilities in several representative computer systems is included as an appendix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information on the 68/Spring Joint Computer Conference (SJCC), to be held in Atlantic city, New Jersey, during April 30-May 2, 1968. The conference is organized by the American Federation of Information Processing Societies. SJCC68's technical program explores the incisive penetration of virtually every business and scientific area by computers by presenting many applications-oriented sessions where computers are emphasized as elements of broader systems. Moreover, the conference committee has chosen SJCC68 to complement the traditional interdisciplinary focus of previous joint computer conference activity by placing emphasis on the growing interrelation of computer and communications. Dr. Albert S. Hoagland, conference chairman, said that the objective is to promote constructive dialogue on the issues (technological, philosophical, and legalistic) involved in the merging interdependence of these fields in terms of their long range developmental perspectives. Professor Ted Bashkow, technical program chairman, advises that the technical program committee has scheduled 21 sessions, of which one third are panels, to present an expansive view of the computer field. He emphasizes that the program stresses, wherever possible, the function of the computer as an integral part of a larger system.

The article focuses on the legislation for copyright revision. It is noted that the use of computer techniques will be effected as the computer usage is omitted from fair means list. Certain transmission of copyright material without royalty payment is discussed as damaging to educational institutions. It is reported that the practical effects of a bill could prevent computer usage in classrooms by students. Inclusion of computer-researchers in bill's fair use list is discussed. Computer manufacturers' request for free input of copyrighted material for information retrieval is reported.

The article presents information on the "1967 Spring Joint Computer Conference," which is scheduled to be held at Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, from April 18-20, 1967. It informs that the second W.W. McDowell Award for an outstanding contribution to the computer field will be presented at the SJCC banquet. Management's viewpoint of the diverse and controversial activities constituting the development of management information systems will be the topic of a special session. Brian W. Pollard, general conference chairman, and Donald L. Stevens, vice chairman, state that the SJCC 67 takes a broader view of the computer industry in an effort to analyze and to clarify many of the misconceptions about EDP and its effect upon society. On April 19th, Major General John W. O'Neill will address the conference at its banquet in the Pennsylvania Room of the Chalfonte-Haddon Hall. Seven SJCC sessions have been designated as panel discussions, to provide opportunity for a careful and candid examination of timely, controversial topics.

The article discusses the role of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the development of the computer industry in the country. It is stated that the FCC is paying special attention to the development of various communication carrier facilities as they are the source of imparting computer knowledge on a massive scale. The FCC will also introduce amendments in the Communication Act. Surveys and inquiries will also be conducted by the FCC to get feedback on the computer industry and implement various measures.

Evaluates the computer technology applications in China. Assessment of initial planning, organization and educational aspects; Machine development progress and automation; Conceptualization of linear programming on workers and peasants.

This article presents information on new products introduced in the computer industry in the U.S., as of June 1, 1966. Clary Corp. has added a new computer, the DE-GOO, to its line of desk sized machines. The computer is the successor to Clary's DE-60, providing three times the speed of the older unit. It uses solid-state arithmetic unit and programmer, plug-in program panels, requires no special cooling and plugs into a standard electrical outlet. Control Data Corp. has announced the development of the Digigraphic 270 series developed for use with the CDC 3300 computer system. The 270 series was demonstrated at the company's Digigraphic Laboratories in Burlington, Massachusetts, in conjunction with the SJCC. Digital Equipment Corp. has demonstrated its Type 338 Display System for the first time. Built for the PDP-8 computer, the display was first announced at the FJCC in Las Vegas. The Type 338 can be used online as a satellite to a large computer system and offline as self-contained, self-generating display.

The article offers news briefs related to the computer industry. The computer, built by Burroughs Corp. under contract to the U.S. Air Force, that guided the first Atlas intercontinental ballistic missile in 1958 is on display in Washington D.C. A directory of member firms located in the U.S. and Canada has been released by the Association of Data Processing Service Organizations. The American Mathematics Society has taken the responsibility for publishing the journal "Mathematics of Computation."

The article presents several news briefs related to the computer industry. The question of reprogramming problems was discussed at the Association for Computing Machinery Reprogramming Conference held in Princeton, New Jersey from 1-3 June, 1965. An international conference on computational linguistics was held in New York City from May 19-21, 1965 discussing related issues. A booklet, "Records Protection in the Age of EDP," is released by the Safe Manufacturers National Association, New York City.

The article offers news briefs related to the computer industry. The First International Conference on computer programming was held at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado on April 15-16, 1965. Bunker Ramo Corp. has decided to discontinue the development of its control computer line after facing losses. The Institute for Scientific Information, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has developed an Automatic Subject Citation Alert (ASCA) after research on a retrieval system called citation indexing.

Focuses on peoples' involvement in the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). Information on opportunities in the ACM; Discussion on corporate contribution to the computing field; Information on the regional representatives of the ACM.

The section presents a calendar of professional activities for the computer industry. The 1974 Harry Goode Memorial Award was presented to professor Edsger W. Dijkstra. The Pacific Regional Symposium will be held at Totem Park Convention Centre. A Workshop on Interactive Computer Graphics is being sponsored by the Association for Computing Machinery Special Interest Group in Computer Graphics.

The article offers information on upcoming activities of computer professionals. Northwest 74, the Pacific regional symposium in regard to computing in the resource industries will be held on May 23-24 at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, Canada. The IEEE-CS Standards Committee announced that it is forming a subcommittee on interface standards. A conference for the identification of privacy needs of the federal government will be held on November 19-20 at Gaithersburg, Maryland.

Presents information related to developments in the computer industry as of June 1, 1973. Session organized by the Association of Computing Machinery, which is titled ACM 73 that will feature several research abstract sessions for which abstracts are invited from laboratories, institutes, industry, and universities; Meeting of the Computer Law Association, a recently incorporated nonprofit organization, scheduled on August 8, in Washington D.C.; Declaration of the Carnegie-Mellon University's Mellon Institute Award for 1973 that will be given to C. Gordon Bell, a leader in the development of minicomputer.

The article presents information on the chronology of events related to the field of computer industry. The Association for Computing Machinery will present a program at the AAAS meeting in Washington D.C. in December on "Current Advances Toward Better Computing for Researchers." The Seventh Annual Princeton Conference on Information Sciences and Systems will be held at Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey, during March 22-23, 1973. Authors are invited to submit papers describing new advances, applications, and ideas in the fields of computer science, communication theory, system and circuit theory including contributions which explore the application of these and related disciplines to current societal issues. The First International Joint Conference on Pattern Recognition will be held from October 30-November 1, 1973, at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington D.C. The conference will cover all aspects of theoretical and applied pattern recognition, including classification theory and complexity, non-parametric methods, image processing, and character recognition.

The article presents news related to the field of computer industry. The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Member-Officer Forum has been scheduled for Wednesday evening, December 6, at the Disneyland Hotel in Anaheim. This forum is an opportunity for members and the officers to have a face-to-face question and answer session. The main emphasis is on questions and comments from members, although the officers are prepared to present specific items for information and feedback. In June, Charles Kerpelman resigned as editor of the Communications Standards Department. A subsequent assessment of the place of the Standards Department in the periodical has led to a decision to discontinue it. What was the main purpose for having the department--to serve as a vehicle for accurate presentation to the information processing community of proposed national standards for comment and discussion prior to ballots on their adoption--no longer exists because of a revised dissemination policy of the American National Standards Institute.

This article reports that a July letter from a federal government official concerning the lack of support in the computer industry for the standard code of information interchange has produced more speculation over the intent of the letter, with its supporting documents, than concern about the content of the letter itself. Harry S. White, associate director of ADP standards in the National Bureau of Standards, sent out a memo to directors of university and college computer centers on July 5, 1972. After discussing the importance of computers to society and the large investment in them by scientific and business endeavors, the memo cites a major problem in the use of computer technology. The character code controversy is a long-standing one in the computer industry, and few active standards workers are willing to go on record over White's letter. Officials of International Business Machines Corp. do not comment on the issue, so is that of the Business Equipment Manufacturers Association, official secretariat for computer standards work in the United States before proposals go to ANSI for approval.

The article presents the comments of F.T. Cary, president of International Business Machines Corp., on the growth experienced by the computer industry in the U.S. The growth facing the computer industry has been enhanced by the increasing need for information and a growing computer technology that has made it possible to deliver information more easily, more quickly and at less cost per computer operation. Computers are being used everywhere in the world for providing better education, better health care, and improved services from both government and industry. Continuing improvements in large-scale integration, semiconductor memory, and magnetics, facilitating in putting more logic and more information online to the user and they also enable putting logic and automatic calculating functions in small, low-cost remote terminals. But before the users can take full advantage of the computer, they will have to be supplied with more tools and techniques that will help them improve their productivity. They will require more ready-made applications software that provide most of the source coding.

The article presents the comments of C. Lester Hogan, president of Fairchild Camera and Instrument Corp., on a new era facing the computer industry. The decades of the 1970s and the 1980s are expected to experience the introduction of electronic data processing in greater abundance for individual use by students, housewives, businessmen and salesmen as well. It is believed that computer installations which now require large floor space will be housed in an extremely small area in future. These reductions in size will bring about comparable decreases in costs and dramatic increases in the performance and versatility of computers. Progress in the semiconductor memory field has been so rapid, that within the next few years high-speed bipolar read-write memories for computers are expected which are 5 to 10 times faster than today. If all computer technologies follow these same growth and performance patterns, the futuristic applications which until now have only been in imagination will arrive all the sooner.

The article presents the comments of Sam Wyly, chairman of the board, University Computing Co., on current and future trends in the computer industry. Recent developments in computing machinery and equipment are coming with increasing relevance and rapidity, and accelerating obsolescence will revolutionize our operations. It would not be an imagination that the future of the computer industry depends on decreasing the costs and increasing the quality and speed of data transmission. service. In the computer industry, unrestrained competition has created a dynamic economic and social force which is used increasingly to serve humanistic ends. Computer's influence on every aspect of business, commerce, industry and government is also clearly obvious. Today, telecommunications systems are designed and operated primarily for computers to communicate with other computers and the knowledge workers who man them. The second major trend prevalent in the computer industry is increased computing productivity.

The article presents the comments of Robert S. Oelman, chairman of National Cash Register Co., on the future prospects for the computer industry. During the next five to ten years, computer manufacturers are expected to concentrate not just on better equipment performance but on more developmental capital to virtually every phase of information processing which is called a total integrated systems approach. Data terminals are expected to adjust to the needs of the system operator as software and hardware will adjust to the requirements of management. In long-term, computer systems will accomplish more tasks and will completely justify their costs. There are two additional factors which offer considerable promise in improving system performance over the next several years. The first factor involves an evolution of software design similar to the pronounced advances achieved in hardware development over the past few years. This will provide long-expected benefits for computer users who have not only experienced software costs climb but also have experienced the frustration of not having their programs work properly.

The article presents the comments of G.G. Probst, president of UNIVAC division of Sperry Rand Corp., on an emerging phase for the computer industry in the U.S. The industry is emerging from a consolidation and adjustment phase that was precipitated by the recession in the U.S. economy. As in most consolidation and corrective phases, the industry is emerging from the temporary interruptive phase in a stronger and more vigorous position than before. The economic situation of the country has actually forced users and manufacturers to take a close look at what their computers were costing them and whether or not they were getting their money's worth. Capital investment decision for computers, which had previously been relegated to lower levels of management, was brought under the watchful eye and management of the chief executive and his executive committees. The net effect of the consolidation and adjustment in the U.S. is the return of computer equipments at much higher than normal rate of returns. The next 25 years in the computer industry are expected to show greater accomplishments than the first 25 years of the industry.

The article offers news briefs on issues related to the U.S. computer industry as of March 1972. University computer network directors have looked for new income or means to lower their costs to mitigate economic problems. Control Data Corp. and the National Cash Register Co. have agreed to cooperate in Control Data's plan to use computer standards to compete with International Business Machines (IBM).

The article presents information about the Fall Joint Computer Conference held in November 1971 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Speakers discussed how the computer can improve the human condition, the consumer's lot, the national life, and the modern life. Others said that its proper use will lead to a cleaner environment, urban revival, and an expanded world. Still others said that the computer can serve the best interests of the community and help solve the world's problems. These variations seemed to bear out the keynote speaker's observation that such phrases as quality of life, have different meanings to different groups of people. Arthur G. Anderson, vice-president and director of technical assessment at International Business Machines Corp., told the keynote audience that many poor people in the U.S. consider any discussion of this subject as abandonment of their concerns for jobs, housing, and social dignity. During a year at the Center for the Study of Democratic Institutions, he said, he discovered that the phrase quality of life antagonizes many people, so he suggested that the computer industry use it in a broader sense.

The article focuses on the impact of the U.S. President Richard Nixon's plan for a cohesive foreign trade policy on the computer industry. An investment tax credit, reinstated after an absence of two years, was allowed for purchase and lease is of business equipment if made in the U.S. For American businesses the last three parts of the plan have a cumulative protective feature that is being vigorously attacked by officials of the European Common Market. On the international scale, the American computer products will accrue added advantages under the Nixon plan. Users almost certainly will face price increases on some American computer memories after the end of the price freeze. In the opinion of the U.S. trading partners, the 7 percent investment tax credit adds insult to injury because the government can limit the credit to American-made products after the import surtax is ended-whenever that happens. President Nixon's discretionary power to withhold the tax credit from foreign-made equipment is an obvious ace up his sleeve in dealing with foreign trade.

The article offers information on several computer meetings to be held between October 1971 to June 1972 including the 1972 International Symposium on Fault-Tolerant Computing to be held in Boston, Massachusetts on June 19 to 21. the 1972 San Diego Biomedical Symposium to be held in California on February 2 to 4, and the first annual meeting of Gesellschaft fuer Informatik (GI) to be held in Munich, Germany on October 12 to 14.

The article reports that at the invitation of the U.S. Department of Commerce, Association for Computing Machinery has recently cosponsored a three-and-one-half day technical conference in Tokyo, in conjunction with Commerce's six-day exhibition of U.S. computer equipment. Computer '70 and the Computer '70 Colloquium, as the show and conference were called, were held at Tokyo's Harumi Pier, from October 12-14, 1970. Over 19,000 members of Japan's data processing community queued up to view at the open admission exhibition the products of 65 U.S. manufacturers. In addition, over 350 persons, most in key managerial and research positions, attended the Colloquium where, to defray expenses, attendance was on a fee basis--about $100 for the full conference and $25 for one day. Also participating in the seven half-day sessions were 27 U.S. computing experts and 10 leading Japanese professionals, whose papers were presented simultaneously in English and Japanese. The timeliness of the topics and the caliber of the participants can be recognized from the program.

A calendar of events for the computer industry in March 1970 is presented. The Conference on Computer Time-Sharing Applications will be held on March 19, 1970 at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. The Eight Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Computer Science in the Life Sciences will be held on March 23-25, 1970 in Houston, Texas. The Info-Expo 70 event will be held on March 23-25, 1970 at Shoreham Hotel in Washington D.C.

This article reports on several news briefs related to the computer industry. With a computer system furnished by the Digital Equipment Corp. and a financial contribution by Idaho Nuclear Corp., the Eastern Idaho Chapter was able to provide a booth at the Annual Eastern Idaho State Fair last fall. The Chapter reports that for many of the 161,000 people at the Fair the booth provided the first opportunity to see an operating computer. The Association for Computing Machinery (ACM)'s Committee on Secondary School Programs, reportedly, is trying to find out what activity exists at the high school level. With this information the committee hopes to develop guidelines on how ACM can help computer activities in the high schools. The American Federation of Information Processing Societies has announced that it will limit the total size of future exhibitions held in conjunction with its Joint Computer Conferences and that it is planning to take steps to facilitate the visiting of exhibits by conference registrants. It is further reported that Dartmouth College is the recipient of a grant from the National Science Foundation for a project entitled "Computer-Based Course Materials for Introductory University Mathematics, Physics and Engineering."

Presents letters to the editor referencing articles and topics discussed in previous issues. Description of proprietary software packages; Importance of proprietary software packages in the computer field; Problems related to the access to the U.S. Government's scientific and technical information; Selection of IFIP Congresses sites.