Bashir Rameev

Bashir Iskandarovich Rameev (Russian: Баши́р Исканда́рович Раме́ев; formerly "Rameyev" in English; 1 May 1918 – 16 May 1994) was a Soviet inventor and scientist, one of the founders of Soviet computing, author of 23 patents, including the first patent in the field of electronic computers officially registered in the USSR—a patent for the Automatic Electronic Digital Machine (1948). Rameev's inventions paved the way for the development of a new field in Soviet science—electronic computing—and for the formation of a new branch of industry that supported it. The central ideas incorporated in Rameev's invention of the electronic computer included: storing programs in computer memory, using binary code, utilizing external devices, and deploying electronic circuits and semiconductor diodes. The first publication about similar technology outside of the USSR appeared in 1949–1950. Rameev also suggested that intermediate computation data be automatically printed on punched tape and sent into the computer's arithmetic device for subsequent processing, meaning that the processing of commands would be performed in the computer's arithmetic device; this is usually referred to as the Von Neumann architecture. Of particular note is Rameev's invention of diode-matrix control circuits, which were used to build his first brainchild, the first serially manufactured Soviet mainframe Strela (1954). In the 1950s, the diode-matrix control circuits were not widespread due to their significant dimensions and high power consumption. However, with subsequent development of microelectronics and the emergence of large-scale integrated circuits, which made possible to deploy tens or hundreds of thousands of diodes and transistors in a single piece of silicon, the concept of control circuits became viable and commonly used. Strela computers carried out calculations in nuclear physics, rocketry and space research. Notably, one of the Strelas was used to calculate Sputnik orbit trajectory. For the development of Strela Rameev and his team were awarded the...