K. D. Tocher

K. D. Tocher
Born19 March 1921[2][1]
Died30 December 1981 (aged 60)[1]
Alma materUniversity of London
Scientific career
Fieldscomputer simulation
InstitutionsUniversity of Southampton[1]
Thesis The design and statistical analysis of experiments  (1952)
Doctoral studentsMeir M. Lehman

Keith Douglas "Toch"[3] Tocher (19 March 1921 – 30 December 1981) was a computer scientist known for contributions to computer simulation.[4]

Tocher received a first-class BSc in Mathematics in 1941 from University College London, a BSc in Statistics in 1946 from University of London, and a PhD in 1952 at Imperial College London.[5][1]

In 1958, he worked for United Steel Companies under Anthony Stafford Beer,[1] and developed the first discrete-event simulation package, the General Simulation Program (GSP), a program that used a common structure to execute a range of simulations.[4][6]

He was appointed professor of operational research at the University of Southampton in 1980.[5] He was awarded the silver medal of the Operational Research Society in 1967 and served as president from 1972–73.[5]

Tocher was also one of the creators of the SRT division algorithm that is used in the hardware of many modern computers.[7][8]

  1. ^ a b c d e Rivett, B. H. P. (1982). "Professor K. D. Tocher, 1921–1981". Journal of the Royal Statistical Society. Series A (General). 145 (4): 525–526. JSTOR 2982123.
  2. ^ "Index entry". FreeBMD. ONS. Retrieved 26 August 2022.
  3. ^ Medina, Eden (2011). Cybernetic Revolutionaries:Technology and Politics in Allende's Chile. MIT Press. p. 248. ISBN 978-0262016490.
  4. ^ a b Robinson, S.; Taylor, S. J. E. (2008). "Celebrating 50 years of simulation software". Journal of Simulation. 2 (3): 127. doi:10.1057/jos.2008.16.
  5. ^ a b c Hollocks, B. W. (2008). "Intelligence, innovation and integrity— KD Tocher and the dawn of simulation". Journal of Simulation. 2 (3): 128–137. doi:10.1057/jos.2008.15. S2CID 56974328.
  6. ^ Rosenhead, J. (2006). "IFORS' Operational Research Hall of Fame Stafford Beer". International Transactions in Operational Research. 13 (6): 577–581. doi:10.1111/j.1475-3995.2006.00565.x.
  7. ^ Harris, David L.; Oberman, Stuart F.; Horowitz, Mark A. (9 September 1998). SRT Division: Architectures, Models, and Implementations (PDF) (Technical report). Stanford University.
  8. ^ Tocher, K.D. (1 January 1958). "Techniques of Multiplication and Division for Automatic Binary Computers". The Quarterly Journal of Mechanics and Applied Mathematics. 11 (3): 364–384. doi:10.1093/qjmam/11.3.364.