computer science

Nick DeWolf

Nick DeWolf is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Nick DeWolf rather than just read about it. In short: Nicholas DeWolf (July 12, 1928 – April 16, 2006) was co-founder of Teradyne, a Boston, Massachusetts-based manufacturer of automatic test equipment. He founded the company in 1960 with Alex d'Arbeloff, a classmate at MIT.

Key takeaways

Nick DeWolf belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Nick DeWolf to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Nick DeWolf from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Nicholas DeWolf (July 12, 1928 – April 16, 2006) was co-founder of Teradyne, a Boston, Massachusetts-based manufacturer of automatic test equipment. He founded the company in 1960 with Alex d'Arbeloff, a classmate at MIT.

Early life and education DeWolf was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and graduated with an S.B. in EECS from MIT in 1948.

Career During his eleven years as CEO of Teradyne, DeWolf is credited with designing more than 300 semiconductor and other test systems, including the J259, the world's first computer-operated integrated circuit tester. After leaving Teradyne in 1971, DeWolf moved to Aspen, Colorado, where in 1979, he teamed with artist Travis Fulton to create Aspen's "dancing fountain". DeWolf also designed a computer system without hard disks or fans; this system (the ON! computer) booted up in seconds, a much faster time than even the computers of today.

Awards 1979: Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International SEMI Award for North America. 2001: Telluride Tech Festival Award of Technology, Boulder, CO. 2005: inducted into the Aspen Hall of Fame with wife Maggie DeWolf.

Photography DeWolf was also a photographer. His son-in-law and archivist, Steve Lundeen, is scanning DeWolf's complete archive and making it available on Flickr.

Death DeWolf died in Aspen, Colorado at the age of 77.

Quotes "What the customer demands is last year's model, cheaper. To find out what the customer needs you have to understand what the customer is doing as well as he understands it. Then you build what he needs and you educate him to the fact that he needs it." "To select a component, size a product, design a system or plan a new company, first test the extremes and then have the courage to resist what is popular and the wisdom to choose what is best".

References

External links The photographic archive of Nick DeWolf on Flickr 'Nicholas DeWolf: The Father of ATE (Automatic Test Equipment)' biography at The Chip History Center 'SEMI Oral History Interview - Nicholas DeWolf - September 24, 2005, Aspen Colorado - Interviewed by Craig Addison Archived November 11, 2013, at the Wayback Machine' Nick DeWolf A/V Artifacts

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Nick DeWolf

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Nick DeWolf claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Nick DeWolf before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Nick DeWolf ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Nick DeWolf

In research: Nick DeWolf appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Nick DeWolf in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Nick DeWolf is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1928 births, 2006 deaths, American company founders, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Nick DeWolf outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Nick DeWolf in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Nick DeWolf means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Nick DeWolf out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Nick DeWolf in simple terms?

Why does Nick DeWolf matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Nick DeWolf?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Nick DeWolf.