Physics
Purdue University
NeXTSTEP, bundled software provide physics researcher optimal working environment
Reproduced with permission from NeXT
Computer, Inc.
A Reference
Guide to NeXT in Higher Education, Fall 1992
ยช
1992 NeXT Computer, Inc
Carrick Talmadge, an assistant research scientist at Purdue
University, has developed a software model of the human
cochlea, depicting how the ear functions and produces
sound, which he coded entirely with NeXT technology. He
recently completed a study in which he measured the ear
canal segments of 73 human subjects and tested them for
spontaneous emissions. Based on his findings, he is
analyzing the data and modifying the NeXT model of the
cochlea.
"I had been working on this project in a Sun environment,"
he says, "but with NeXTSTEP I've found I have more control
over the parameters I set. I can easily change the
parameters and fine-tune the analysis."
In addition, he says, "I like the fact that NeXT runs UNIX
because that's what I've worked on before. And NeXT's
object-oriented programming capabilities make it easy for
me to provide the same consistent interface among many
projects because Interface Builder is such an excellent
tool."
On the NeXT platform, Talmadge is also writing software for
digital analysis of acoustic signals generated by the human
ear. He uses a NeXTcube for data acquisition via the
Singular Solutions A/D64x, as well as for digital analysis
of the resulting sound files. He uses a NeXTstation to
augment the cube in this task.
Meanwhile, Talmadge is writing a book on gravitation, using
the TEX document- processing environment and TopDraw to
create the graphical elements. Each chapter analyzes a
particular gravitation experiment. "What would have taken
me 1,000 lines of code in a DOS or X-11 Windowing
environment takes a few simple steps in the NeXTSTEP
environment," he says. "In any other environment, I would
have had to write new code for each analysis; but since I
can reuse code in the NeXTSTEP environment, it's much
easier. Not having to write new code each time saves so
much time-the number of objects available to write code
just blows me away.
"What sold me on the NeXT was that the machine comes
bundled with a lot of software. On any other machine, I
would have had to spend several thousand dollars and deal
with the hassle of getting the software installed. The
bundled software really sets NeXT apart.
Mathematica is an incredibly powerful tool as are
Interface Builder, Digital Librarian, TEX, and NeXTmail.
There's nothing out there that competes with NeXT in its
price range.
"I have access to and run code on a number of other
computers, including Stardent Titan P3, Alliant FX/8, Sun
3/60, ISI 68K, Silicon Graphics 4D/35 and 4D/320, Zenith
386, and Mac 11ci. In most respects, the NeXT far exceeds
the software performance in any of these other platforms. I
guess you could call me a satisfied customer!" Talmadge
says.
For more information, please contact:
Carrick Talmadge
Assistant Research Scientist
Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN 47907
(317) 494-8743
cit@physics.purdue.edu