astronomy

Robert W. Doran

Robert W. Doran is a astronomy 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 Robert W. Doran rather than just read about it. In short: Robert William Doran HFNZCS (5 November 1944 – 13 October 2018) was a New Zealand-based computer scientist and historian of computing. He was Professor Emeritus of Computer Science at the University of Auckland, New Zealand.

Key takeaways

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

Reference excerpt

Robert William Doran HFNZCS (5 November 1944 – 13 October 2018) was a New Zealand-based computer scientist and historian of computing. He was Professor Emeritus of Computer Science at the University of Auckland, New Zealand. Doran studied at the University of Canterbury (New Zealand) and for a master's degree in computer science from Stanford University (California, United States) in 1967. He taught at City University (London, England) and Massey University (Palmerston North, New Zealand). He first worked with computers in 1963. He was a Principal Computer Architect at Amdahl Corporation (Sunnyvale, California) during 1976–1982. He joined the Department of Computer Science at the University of Auckland in 1982 and was Head of department. He maintained computing history displays in the department, especially of totalisators. The history displays are now part of The Bob Doran Museum of Computing. Doran's research interests included computer architecture, parallel algorithms, and computer programming. He was also interested in the history of computing. In 2017, he contributed to The Turing Guide. Doran was made an Honorary Fellow of the New Zealand Computer Society, now the Institute of IT Professionals. Doran died on 13 October 2018 at home in Auckland.

Selected publications Carpenter, B. E. & Doran, R. W. (1977). The other Turing machine. The Computer Journal, 20(3):269–279. Doran, R. W. (1977). Computer Architecture: A Structured Approach. Academic Press, 1979. Doran, R. W. & Thomas, L. K. (1980). Variants of the software solution to mutual exclusion. Information Processing Letters, 10(4/5):206–208, July. Carpenter, B. E. & Doran, R. W. (1986). AM Turing's ACE Report of 1946 and Other Papers, Vol. 10, Charles Babbage Institute Reprint Series for the History of Computing, MIT Press. Doran, R. W. (1988). Variants of an improved carry look-ahead adder. IEEE Transactions on Computers, 37(9):1110–1113. doi:10.1109/12.2261 Doran, R. W. (1988). Amdahl Multiple-Domain Architecture. Computer, 21(10):20–28. doi:10.1109/2.7054 Thomborson, C. D. & Doran, R. W. (2005). Incredible Codes. In A. Brook (ed.), Incredible Science: Explore the Wonderful World of Science (pp. 16–17). New Zealand: Penguin Books. Doran, R. W. (1995). Special cases of division, Journal of Universal Computer Science, 1(3):176–194. Doran, R. W. (2005). Computer architecture and the ACE computers. In B. J. Copeland (ed.), Alan Turing's Automatic Computing Engine (pp. 193–206). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Doran, R. W. (2007). The Gray code. Journal of Universal Computer Science, 13(11):1573–1597. Doran, R. W. (2007). The First Automatic Totalisator. The Rutherford Journal, 2. Carpenter, B. E. & Doran, R. W. (2014). John Womersley: Applied Mathematician and Pioneer of Modern Computing. IEEE Annals of the History of Computing, 36(2):60–70. doi:10.1109/MAHC.2014.25 Doran is also a listed inventor on the following US patents assigned to Amdahl Corporation: 4503512 (1985), 4967342 (1990), 5109522 (1992).

References

External links Emeritus Professor Bob Doran home page via Archive.org Bob Doran personal home page via Archive.org

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Robert W. Doran

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Robert W. Doran claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In astronomy, 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 Robert W. Doran 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 Robert W. Doran 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 Robert W. Doran

In research: Robert W. Doran appears in astronomy 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 Robert W. Doran 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: Robert W. Doran is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1944 births, 2018 deaths, Academic staff of Massey University, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Robert W. Doran 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.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Robert W. Doran” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Robert W. Doran in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Robert W. Doran 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 Robert W. Doran out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Robert W. Doran in simple terms?

Why does Robert W. Doran matter?

Because it connects several astronomy 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 Robert W. Doran?

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 Robert W. Doran.