Vladimír Vand (1911–1968): Pioneer of Computational Methods in Crystallography

The Czech scholar Vladimír Vand (1911–1968) substantially enriched many areas of science, from crystallography and astrogeology to computing. His most notable contribution to computing is the invention of a mechanical computer containing approximately 1 million little steel balls rolling through many guide bars. Using this research, Vand collaborated with William Cochran and Francis Crick on the early analysis of the structure of helix molecules.