New Computer Science facility showcased

by Daniel J. Fitzgibbons, Chronicle staff

Two former Computer Science chairs, David Stemple (left) and Rick Adrion, helped current chair Jim Kurose (partially hidden) during last week's ribbon cutting ceremony for the Computer Science Research Center. Watching at right are state Sen. Stan Rosenberg, President William M. Bulger and Chancellor David Scott. (Stan Sherer photos)

early a year after moving into its new building on Governors Drive, the Computer Science Department took time last week to celebrate the official opening of the $14.6 million, state-of-the-art research facility.

     During the two-day celebration on Sept. 14-15, the department conducted ed tours and a series of research demonstrations for the campus community and also hosted a slate of technical presentations.

     The department also honored three distinguished computer scientists at a special convocation where they were awarded honorary degrees.

     President William M. Bulger conferred the honorary doctor of science degrees on Leonard Kleinrock, Raj Reddy and Barry Boehm during ceremonies in Bowker Auditorium.

     Kleinrock is called "The Father of the Internet" for his ground-breaking work in packet-switching, the technology which underpins the Internet. His University of California at Los Angeles lab sent the first Internet message on Oct. 29, 1969.

After receiving his honorary degree from President Bulger (left), UCLA computer scientist Leonard Kleinrock has his doctoral hood adjusted by Robert Hallock, interim dean of the College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics, and Linda Slakey, interim dean of Commonwealth College.

     He has been a UCLA faculty member since 1963, serving as the chair of the computer science department from 1991-95. He has published more than 225 papers and has authored six books. He co-founded Linkabit Corp, the Computer Channel, and the Technology Transfer Institute. Recently he founded Nomadix Inc., a high-tech start-up company that is developing advanced nomadic computing technology.

     Reddy is the Herbert A. Simon Professor of Computer Science and Robotics in the school of computer science at Carnegie-Mellon University. He is renowned in the fields of human-computer interactions and artificial intelligence.

     In 1984, Reddy was a recipient of the Legion of Honor presented by President Jacques Mitterand of France for his work with the World Center for Computer Science and Human Resources, an organization that works to bring advanced technology to developing countries. He is co-chair of the President's Information Technology Advisory Committee.

     His current research projects include speech recognition and understanding systems; collaboration on the Web; universal digital libraries; and learning on demand.

During an afternoon of public demonstrations, an ATRV mini, real world robot gets the once-over from (left to right) Copper Giloth, director of Academic Computing; graduate student Patrick Deegan, software engineer Alexander Wise and graduate student TJ Burnette. The robot is used as a mobile platform for sensing devices.

     Regarded as a pioneer in software engineering, Boehm served with the U.S. Department of Defense as director of the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) Information Science and Technology Office, and as director of the Defense Research and Engineering (DDR&E) Software and Computer Technology Office.
During his tenure at DARPA, he worked closely with University scientists on the Arcadia project, one of the largest academic software engineering research project collaborations ever.

     Recently, he worked with University faculty members under National Science Foundation auspices to help shape a research agenda for the software engineering community.

     His current research interests include software process modeling, software requirements engineering, software architectures, software engineering environments, and knowledge-based software engineering.

Related Web sites:

• Computer Science Building Dedication
• Department of Computer Science