# The Author 2008. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The British Computer Society. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please email:
[email protected] Advance Access publication on June 18, 2008 doi:10.1093/comjnl/bxm117 Foreword re C. S. Wallace DAVID L. DOWE School of Computer Science and Software Engineering, Clayton School of I.T., Monash University, Clayton, Vic 3800, Australia Email:
[email protected] http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/~dld 0.1 CHRIS WALLACE’S OWN WORDS Access subsection of the KDF9, increasing its peak channel (ESSENTIALLY) performance while halving the hardware. Also with Brian Rowswell he designed and constructed a high speed data One of the second generation of computer scientists, Chris link between the KDF9 and a Control Data Computer. It Wallace completed his tertiary education in 1959 with was during this period that he published a suggested design a Ph.D. in nuclear physics, on cosmic ray showers, under for a fast multiplier/divide unit, now known as the Wallace Dr Paul George at Sydney University. Needless to say, compu- Tree [256, 254]4. This design eventually formed the basis of ter science was not, at that stage, an established academic multiply units in most modern computers. Other achievements discipline. during this fruitful period included the development of the With Max Brennan1 andJohnMaloshehaddesignedand hardware component of the undergraduate course in comput- built a large automatic data logging system for recording ing and, in 1967, of the first Honours level Computing cosmic ray air shower events and with Max Brennan also devel- Course in Australia.