John B EichlerJohn Eichler holds a BS degree with a double major in mathematics and physics from the Illinois Institute of Technology and a MA in interdisciplinary studies from the University of Arkansas. His masters thesis was on investigating paradigms in three controversial area of science. He first programmed a UNIVAC 1105-a large scientific vacuum tube computer-to design blast shields for nuclear reactors under a contract from the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission. Later he worked as a systems programmer for several commercial organizations where he became proficient in the innards of operating systems. His speciality was real-time systems where the computer must keep up with the external environment. For about a dozen years he worked in the field of computerized electrocardiography where he worked on minicomputers and microcomputers. In the mid 1980s he designed and built what was then the fastest minicomputer-based ECG analysis system in the world. For that machine he designed and built specialized analog and digital circuitry. In addition, for that system he wrote from scratch a multi-tasking operating system to optimize performance. Later while working for a ballot design business, he wrote an online web-based system for a large western state for the 2000 general election for ballot preparation and the subsequent election night results presentation on the state's website. Whereas many programmers eventually move on to other activities, the author has stayed focused on the technical aspects of computer technology at all levels, systems, applications, and hardware design where he found his skills have been greatly appreciated. Among his other interests are cosmology, geophysics, geology, and the physiological mechanism in which brains actually store and retrieve vast amounts of information. Read More Read Less