Tommy Flowers

Author: Leandro Alegsa Creation date: November 14, 2022

Thomas Harold Flowers, BSc, DSc, OBE (22 December 1905 – 28 October 1998) was a British engineer. During World War II, Flowers designed Colossus, the world's first programmable electronic computer, to help solve encrypted German messages.

The first Mark 1, with 1500 vacuum tube valves, ran at Dollis Hill in November 1943, and then at Bletchley Park in January 1944.

A Mark 2 redesign with 2,400 valves had begun before the first computer was finished. The first Mark 2 Colossus went into service at Bletchley Park on 1 June 1944, and immediately produced vital information for the imminent D-Day landing.

Questions and Answers

Q: Who was Tommy Flowers?

A: Tommy Flowers was a British engineer who designed the world's first programmable electronic computer during World War II.

Q: What was the name of the computer that Tommy Flowers designed?

A: The computer that Tommy Flowers designed was called Colossus.

Q: What was the purpose of Colossus?

A: Colossus was designed to help solve encrypted German messages during World War II.

Q: When was the first Mark 1 Colossus computer built and where did it run?

A: The first Mark 1 Colossus computer, with 1500 vacuum tube valves, ran at Dollis Hill in November 1943.

Q: When did the first Mark 2 Colossus go into service and where?

A: The first Mark 2 Colossus went into service at Bletchley Park on June 1, 1944.

Q: What was the significance of the Mark 2 Colossus going into service at Bletchley Park?

A: The Mark 2 Colossus immediately produced vital information for the imminent D-Day landing.

Q: When did Tommy Flowers die?

A: Tommy Flowers died on October 28, 1998.