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Five computer science
visionaries on
the state of the industry
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Berkeley
alumni (left to right) Nicklaus Wirth (Ph.D.’63 EECS),
Ken Thompson (B.S.’65, M.S.’66 EECS), Jim Gray
(B.S.’66 Eng. Math, Ph.D.’69 CS), Bill Joy (M.S.’79
EECS), and Butler Lampson (Ph.D.’67 EECS), in the words
of moderator Randy Katz, “an incredible brain trust
of computer science expertise,” participated in the
visionaries panel. Wirth, Thompson, Gray, and Lampson are
all recipients of the Turing award, in 1984, 1983, 1998, and
1992, respectively.
PEG SKORPINSKI PHOTO |
At a computer science summit hosted by the College of Engineering
last semester, five of the world's preeminent computer pioneers
met to discuss the future of computing, from ubiquitous sensors
and new programming languages to Internet security and the buggy
behavior of today's software. The meeting was not a technical
conference or corporate board meeting; the Computer Science Division
of Berkeley's EECS Department was celebrating its 30th anniversary,
and these visionaries were here for the party.
Hosted by Professor Randy Katz, the Berkeley Visionaries Panel
provided a rare opportunity to hear Jim Gray, Bill Joy, Butler
Lampson, Ken Thompson, and Nicklaus Wirth look back at their Berkeley
years and ahead to the future of the industry they helped create.
The panel was the closing event in a day that began with a series
of presentations highlighting the department's rich history of
invention. After all, this was the birthplace of Berkeley UNIX,
the relational database, RAID (Redundant Arrays of Inexpensive
Disks), Reduced Instruction Set Computing (RISC), Simulation Program
with Integrated Circuit Emphasis (SPICE), and dozens of other
innovations that are directly connected to multibillion-dollar
industries.
And the innovation continues. Berkeley computer scientists described
their latest breakthroughs in such diverse disciplines as artificial
intelligence, pervasive computing, and computational biology.
Later presentations showcased the multidisciplinary efforts of
the Berkeley-based Center for Information Technology Research
in the Interest of Society (CITRIS), which is working on use-inspired
basic research to solve major world challenges through information
technology.
Go to http://netshow01.eecs.berkeley.edu/CS-day-004/Berkeley_Visionaries.wmv
for the Web-cast of the panel discussion.
David Pescovitz writes Lab Notes,
the College of Engineering’s online research digest and
contributes to Popular Science, Small Times, and Business
2.0. His writing on science and technology has been featured
in Wired, Scientific American, IEEE Spectrum, and the
New York Times.
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