It is possible to take two opposite lines on the origin of the modern computer. (There should also be a place for Babbage in this story, but I will set that aside.)
One line says that Turing invented the computer in his 1936 mathematical paper. After that, it was just a matter of putting his ideas into practice. In fact, Turing wrote that in pursuing practical computers, he was building a concrete version of his 1936 universal machine. Mathematicians and logicians are often sympathetic to this line.
Another line says that building computers was primarily an engineering feat, which had little or nothing to do with Turing or mathematical ideas. As it regards electronic computers in the US, the feat was accomplished by Atanasoff and Berry on a small scale (ABC) and later by Eckert, Mauchly, and their many collaborators on a larger scale (ENIAC). I know of no evidence that Atanasoff, Berry, Eckert, or Mauchly knew much about Turing’s work. This seems to contradict the first line of thinking. Many engineers, including Eckert and Mauchly, often endorse this second line of thinking.
Although both sides have a point, I think it would be desirable to reach a deeper understanding of the respects in which each side is correct. In other words, it would be desirable to reach a more accurate picture of how engineering and mathematics came together in the birth of the computer. And one important key to this more accurate picture is von Neumann, who became a consultant for Eckert and Mauchly and contributed greatly to the design of the EDVAC.
As von Neumann argued, the EDVAC was more “general purpose” than any computer before it. If there were evidence that in contributing to designing the EDVAC, von Neumann was indeed self-consciously attempting to implement Turing’s universal machine, then this would support the first line against the second. The mystery is compounded by the fact that although von Neumann was well aware of Turing’s 1936 paper on universal machines, he did not cite it in his work on computers (as far as I know).
To make progress on this issue, we should know in as much detail as possible in what ways Turing influenced von Neumann, and in what ways Turing’s influence shaped von Neumann’s contribution to the design of the EDVAC.
I think this is a deep and important historical and philosophical question. Needless to say, I have read much of what has been published on Turing, von Neumann, and the origin of the computer, and I have not found a satisfactory answer. If anyone has information that would shed light on this, or knows where more information might be found, I would be very grateful if they would let me know.
“I think this is a deep and important historical and philosophical question.”
What hangs on this, philosophically?
A correct conceptual understanding of computers, and more generally the relationship between mathematical theory, practical goals, and engineering skills in the design and construction of artifacts.