RCA/ACSIMATIC BRIEFING, 14 JULY 1961

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP80B01139A000200110007-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: S
• Document Page Count: 5
• Document Creation Date: December 19, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 30, 2005
• Sequence Number: 7
• Publication Date: July 26, 1961
• Content Type: SUMMARY

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CODIB-D-87/1
26 July 1961
UNITED STATES INTELLIGENCE BOARD
COMMITTEE ON DOCUMENTATION
ItCA/ACSIMATIC Briefi , 14 July 161
1. Attached for the record is a summary of the presentations given.
(Attachment A) and a corrected list of attendees (Attachment B).
2. It should he noted that the over-all classification of the briefing
was SECRET, but that no Company Proprietary information was included.
The TIROS photography and gear seen was Unclassified.
Secretary
Attachments - 2
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Attachment A
Summary: RCA/ACSIMATIC Briefing, 14 July .1961
Briefing Location: RCA Astro-Electronic Products Division Laboratory,
Locust Corner, Hightstown, New Jersey
Company Participants: Barton Kreuzer, Vice-President; Saul Sternberg,
Chief Engineer; Marvin S. Cohen, Manager/Project ACSIMATIC; Dr.
Warren Reed, Deputy Chief/Collations Systems Branch; Burnett Sams,
Senior Systems Analyst and Programmer; A. W. Reickord, Chief
Engineer/Project ACSIMATIC; Dr. Herbert M. Gurk, Chief/Scientific
& Technical Intelligence Group; E. Bradbury, Assistant Manager/Project
ACSIMATIC; John Marsh, Marketing Dept. ; Ralph Teare, Chief Con-
tracting Officer/Project ACSIMATIC; Maj. Gen. R. A. Schow, USA (Ret.).
ACSI Representative: John F. Kuligren, Army CODIB member and Special
Assistant/ACSI for Project ACSIMATIC
1. Following a late CODIB arrival due to low ceiling conditions at Trenton's
Mercer County Airport, Mr. Kullgren in his introductory remarks welcomed the
group on behalf of ACSI and turned the meeting over to Mr. Kreuzer who con-
veyed RCA's welcome. Mr. Cohen then summarized the Collation System,
stating that his and successive briefings would be at the SECRET level and
would not involve any Company Proprietary information.
2. Mr. Cohen distinguished between what he called 1) passive handling
(cataloging, dissemination and storage) of documents, and 2) collation of
information (as done by the analyst). He said that the collation analyst was
best equipped to provide feed-back to the collector on file gaps. The collation
process he described included extraction, assimilation, retrieval, research,
file maintenance, and finished intelligence production. Statistics were given
on anticipated message rates, daily query rates, response times, etc.
r , B, Much more detailed information than this trip summary will attempt
can be found in the :monthly classified ACSIMATIC progress reports dis-
tributed routinely to the CODIB-member agencies, also available centrally
in the CIA/Office of Central Reference ADP Collection/. Major problems
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Attachment A
encountered in designing ACSIMATIC include: a) retrieval speed and accuracy;
solution: file structure; b) man-machine functions and organization; solution:
input procedures; c) man-machine communications; solution: computer pro-
gramming; d) control and operational efficiency; solution: programming
system; e) implementation; solution: equipment configuration.
3. Dr. Reed then discussed file structure, stating that random access
capability was not by itself satisfactory - that file organization was also
required. He presented a chart describing a glossary file, hierarchy index
file and information record file, the latter being tied in with a bulk data file
and a history file. In discussing the collation logic he described the input
processor (doing validity checks, establishing hierarchy relations. dis-
tributing data in core memory) -3 collation and retrieval -) correlation
analysis 4 file, updating, editing -3 output. On a disc file, with 1/10
second random access capability, are stored the glossaries, hierarchy
list and information record. On magnetic tape are the program library,
bulk data and historical files. 100.000 plus instructions are required for
the logic.
4. Mr. Sams discussed the programs to be handled with a general pur-
pose computer and peripheral equipment, with octal code conversion to AMCAL
code in mnemonic form, describing the great number of routines required for
a fairly simple problem. Mr. Reickord then described the equipment system
as a three-phase effort: a) central processor system; b) data storage system;
c) analyst console system. He said that in the second half of FY 62 they
expect to have 12 magnetic tapes, 100, 000. 000 character disc storage,
memory core in the central processor of 32, 000.000 words with three
in-out processors, one paper tape, one card, and one printer unit.
5. Dr. Gurk discussed problems in develDping operational scientific
intelligence programs. He differentiated between the "horizontal" collation
system to develop a broad data base for large volume storage and retrieval and
the S & T "vertical" concentration on a narrow subject, doing analysis in depth,
with data computation. He mentioned work on four specific problems: residual
ground forces, radar characteristics determination, guided missile sensing,
and railroad capabilities, describing the latter in some detail. Mr. Kullgren
said ACS]: plans to expand the railroad model to highways and inland waterways.
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Attachment A
6. Switching hats, Dr. Gurk then discussed RCA's work on natural language
processing. describing some of the problem areas as ambiguity, different forms
of representation of the same information, organization of the information, loss
through condensation or conversion to machine media, etc. He felt their earlier
work in semantic analysis hadn't helped much in auto-indexing and auto-
abstracting efforts. They have now worked up RCA 501 computer programs on
syntax analysis, document condensation, and hierachical index generation.
7. The visitors were split Into two groups to tour the lab facilities,
particularly to see Mr. Bradbury's demonstration of the prototype analyst console
for querying the files and outputs of the language analysis computer programs
described by Dr. Gurk. Also seen was the first photography from TIROS III;
monitoring equipment used with the weather satellite; an impressive bit of gear
for doing P1 work on videotape, providing resolution settings from 125 to 1000
lines and with hand dials for highlighting brightness/darkness or light/shadow
areas on a pinpoint center or whole picture basis; TIROS IV, in the lab for
testing; and a science-fiction-like assortment of models of "vehicles" to travel
on the surface of the moon.
8. Following brief concluding remarks by Mr. Kullgren, and an expression
of appreciation by Mr. Borel, the group departed for Washington at about
5:15 P.M.
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Attachment B - Final
RCA/AC&IMATIC Briefing, Hightstown, N.Jo
Washington Attendees
DOD
ARMY
Mr. Lowell R. Dailey
Mr. John F. Kullgren
Col. Frederick B. Keller, Jr.
NAVY
AIR FORCE
25X1 NSA
AEC
FBI
CIA
Capt. Donald C. Higgins
Capt. Jack O. Johnson
Dr. Maurice H. Hellner
Mr. Alfred Bodian
Mr. George Kidd
Dr. John H. Kennedy
Mr. John H. Toler
Mr. Eldon B. Smith
Mr. Benjamin H. Fisher
Mr. Martin Snyderman, Jr.
Mr. Norman F. Stultz
Mr. Paul A. Morel
Dr_ Gtr E. Guthe
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ORO
25X1 (Operations Research Office,
Johns Hopkins)
: Maj. Gen. James G. Christiansen, USA (Ret.)
J
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