Editorial asynchronous architecture

Asynchronous design is enjoying a worldwide resurgence of interest following several decades in obscurity. Many of the early computers employed asynchronous design techniques, but since the mid 1970s almost all digital design has been based around the use of a central clock. The clock simplifies most aspects of design and offers methodologies which are straightforward and easy to automate. These benefits have helped digital engineers to take advantage of the ever-expanding resource at their disposal, while keeping design costs under control. Comprehensive CAD systems used pervasively in industry, and targeted specifically at synchronous design styles, are one way of achieving this.