The Department of Computer Science has awarded three honorary degrees to distinguished computer scientists for their groundbreaking work. The recipients, Konrad Zuse, Lotfi A. Zadeh, and Juris Hartmanis, have all had profound influence on the development of computer science.
Konrad Zuse. Foto: W. Hunscher
Konrad Zuse was born in Berlin in 1910. He studied civil engineering and promoted the vision of programmable machines that would relieve engineers from heavy calculations. In 1938, he built Z1, a mechanical computing machine that was based on the same architectural principles as today’s computers. In 1941 Zuse created Z3, the world’s first operational computer. The Z3 marked the beginning of a new era of technology. Zuse continued his work well into the 1960s, designing and building numerous innovative computers, intended for commercial use. In 1985 he was appointed honorary member of the German Gesellschaft für Informatik, which every two years awards the prestigious Konrad-Zuse-Medal.
Lotfi A. Zadeh. Foto: W. Hunscher
Prof. Dr. Zadeh was born in Baku, Azerbaijan, in 1921. In 1959 he joined the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. In the beginning, Zadeh’s main focus was on Control Theory, but in the middle of the 1960s, in a number of seminal works, he laid the foundation for the theory of Fuzzy Logic. Since many years, Zadeh is closely connected to our department. He has had a strong impact on the formation of working groups in the field of Fuzzy Logic and the emergence of a comprehensive research network covering the theory and application of computational intelligence. Prof. Dr. Zadeh was awarded the honorary degree in 1993.
Juris Hartmanis. Foto: W. Hunscher
Juris Harmanis was born in Riga, Latvia, in 1928. He studied Physics in Magdeburg and, after his emigration, Applied Mathematics in Kansas City. He obtained a PhD in Mathematics at the California Institute of Technology. After an employment at the General Electric Research Laboratory he accepted the Walter R. Read professorship at Cornell University. For his groundbreaking research in the field of the complexity theory he received the ACM Turing Award (together with R. E. Stearns). Hartmanis is member of the American National Academy of Engineering and of the National Research Council Computer Science and Telecommunications Board. During his work as Assistant Director of the National Science Foundation for Computer and Information Sciences and Engineering and Head of the National Research Council he significantly contributed to the development of computer science. Prof. Hartmanis was awarded the honorary degree in 1995.