The Conception and Development of Parallel Processors: A Personal Memoir

The circumstances surrounding the conception and development of centrally controlled array processors are described in this article. The time period involved, from 1953 to 1975, brackets the Westinghouse SOLOMON systems, their precursors, and the University of Illinois ILLIAC IV. Some reflections on past and possible future interplay between university and government laboratories on the one hand and industry on the other are made at the conclusion.