
What Neural Networks Are and Why They Are Useful 165
occurred that is perhaps more important: the shift to PCs for neural network
implementations. Personal computers had changed drastically since the introduc-
tion of the first Altairs and Apples. Their increased capabilities (speed, memory, mass
storage, communications, and graphics) and reduced cost of personal computers
made the implementation of useful and cost-effective neural network systems uni-
versally attractive. As of 1994, more than 50 million PCs were being sold annually
worldwide (Gates 1995).
In 1994 the first IEEE World Congress on Computational Intelligence was held
in Florida. For the ...