Carel S. Scholten (Amsterdam, 1925 – 2009) was a

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...

and a pioneer of

computing Computing is any goal-oriented activity requiring, benefiting from, or creating computing machinery. It includes the study and experimentation of algorithmic processes, and development of both hardware and software. Computing has scientific, ...

. He went to the

Vossius Gymnasium Vossius Gymnasium is a public gymnasium in Amsterdam, North Holland, Netherlands. It was established in 1926 and is named after Gerardus Vossius. In 2014, it was ranked best VWO school in Amsterdam and 4th in the country by RTL Nieuws. It is a ...

in Amsterdam and then studied

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...

from 1945 to 1952 at the

University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, nl, Universiteit van Amsterdam) is a public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The UvA is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in the city, the other being ...

. In 1947 he was asked by the Dutch ''Mathematisch Centrum'' (which later became the

Centrum Wiskunde & Informatica The (abbr. CWI; English: "National Research Institute for Mathematics and Computer Science") is a research centre in the field of mathematics and theoretical computer science. It is part of the institutes organization of the Dutch Research Co ...

) to collaborate in building an automatic calculator with his friend and fellow student Bram Loopstra. Their first system, the ARRA I was not a success, but its successor, the ARRA II, on which

Gerrit Blaauw Gerrit Anne "Gerry" Blaauw (July 17, 1924 – March 21, 2018) was a Dutch computer scientist, known as one of the principal designers of the IBM System/360 line of computers, together with Fred Brooks, Gene Amdahl, and others. ...

also collaborated, was. In 1954 work started on the ARMAC, which he built together with Loopstra and Edsger W. Dijkstra, who was responsible for the software and collaborated with Scholten for more than 30 years. The ARMAC was remarkable for its use of

transistor upright=1.4, gate (G), body (B), source (S) and drain (D) terminals. The gate is separated from the body by an insulating layer (pink). A transistor is a semiconductor device used to Electronic amplifier, amplify or electronic switch, switch ...

s. In 1958 Scholten went to work for

Electrologica N.V. Electrologica was a pioneering Dutch computer manufacturer from 1956 to 1968, when it was taken over by Philips. It was started by A. van Wijngaarden, B.J. Loopstra and C.S. Scholten from the Mathematisch Centrum (Mathematical centre) in ...

(later

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...

Electrologica), where he developed the

Electrologica X1 The Electrologica X1 was a digital computer designed and manufactured in the Netherlands from 1958 to 1965. About thirty were produced and sold in the Netherlands and abroad. The X1 was designed by the Mathematical Centre in Amsterdam, an acade ...

computer with Loopstra; up to 1964, 40 models were installed, mainly at universities. He remained with Philips Electrologica until 1979, when he switched to the

Philips Natuurkundig Laboratorium The Philips Natuurkundig Laboratorium (English translation: ''Philips Physics Laboratory'') or NatLab was the Dutch section of the Philips research department, which did research for the product divisions of that company. Originally located in the ...

, where he stayed until 1985. In 1991 he was awarded an

honorary doctorate An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or ''ad hon ...

Technische Universiteit Eindhoven The Eindhoven University of Technology ( nl, Technische Universiteit Eindhoven), abbr. TU/e, is a public technical university in the Netherlands, located in the city of Eindhoven. In 2020–21, around 14,000 students were enrolled in its BSc a ...

Publications

* Edsger W. Dijkstra and Carel S. Scholten (1990). ''Predicate Calculus and Program Semantics''. Springer-Verlag – An abstract, formal treatment of

Predicate transformer semantics Predicate transformer semantics were introduced by Edsger Dijkstra in his seminal paper " Guarded commands, nondeterminacy and formal derivation of programs". They define the semantics of an imperative programming paradigm by assigning to each ''st ...

External links

''Eredoctor Carel Scholten overleden - TU Eindhoven''
in Dutch) – Obituary by the

TU Eindhoven The Eindhoven University of Technology ( nl, Technische Universiteit Eindhoven), abbr. TU/e, is a public technical university in the Netherlands, located in the city of Eindhoven. In 2020–21, around 14,000 students were enrolled in its BSc an ...

.
Unsung Heroes in Dutch Computing History – Carel S. Scholten and Bram Jan Loopstra
– Illustrated report of his work at the TU Eindhoven.

(in Dutch, on the Electrologica Foundation site) – Retrospective address by Carel Scholten on 23-11-1979.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scholten, Carel 1925 births 2009 deaths 20th-century Dutch physicists Scientists from Amsterdam Philips employees University of Amsterdam alumni