Carol Ann Bartz

Former CEO of both Autodesk and Yahoo, Bartz is a prominent figure in the computer industry. In 1976, she went to work at the manufacturing conglomerate 3M, but left after her request...

Robert E. Cook

Founder of VM Software (later renamed Systems Center), a provider of software utilities for IBM's VM operating system, Cook built his first company into a firm listed on both the Nasdaq and...

Michael Shrayer

Inventor of the Electric Pencil, the first word processor for home computers, Shrayer launched an unexpected and lucrative new business from what began as a personal project. In 1975, Shrayer was "semi-retired" from...

Matthew (Matt) David Welsh

Co-founder of the Linux Documentation Project, Welsh is a computer scientist and software engineer. He has also served as the Gordon McKay Professor of Computer Science at Harvard University School of Engineering...

Kevin Mitnick

One of the most controversial and most-wanted computer hackers in United States history, Mitnick was convicted of various computer- and communications-related crimes in the late 20th century. Following his release, Mitnick went on...

Ralph E. Griswold

Co-creator of SNOBOL and pioneer in string processing languages, Griswold made lasting contributions to non-numerical computation. He worked for Bell Labs in 1962, where he studied ideas for non-numerical computation. SNOBOL was...

Laszlo (Les) A. Belady

Author of the most-cited paper in software over two decades, Belady's 1966 article on Virtual Memory Systems set a landmark acknowledged by the Citation Index Classic. A design engineer and veteran senior...

Roger R. Schell

Regarded as the "father" of the Trusted Computer System Evaluation Criteria (the "Orange Book"), Schell is one of the foremost contributors to, and authorities on, "high assurance" computer security. He has served...

Gottfried Ungerboeck

Inventor of trellis coded modulation, Ungerboeck is a pioneering researcher in digital communications. Ungerboeck received an electrical engineering degree (with emphasis on telecommunications) from Vienna University of Technology in 1964, and a Ph.D....

Irving Stoy Reed

Co-inventor of the Reed-Solomon error-detecting and correcting codes, Reed made many contributions to areas of electrical engineering including radar, signal processing, and image processing. He was part of the team that built...

Alexander L'vovich Brudno

Best known for fully describing the alpha-beta (α-β) search algorithm, Brudno was a Russian Jewish computer scientist who lived in Israel from 1991. He developed the "mathematics/machine interface" for the M-2 computer...

John William Mauchly

Co-inventor of ENIAC, the first general purpose electronic digital computer, Mauchly worked alongside J. Presper Eckert to design EDVAC, BINAC, and UNIVAC I, the first commercial computer made in the United States....

James (J.H.) Hardy Wilkinson

A prominent researcher in numerical analysis to facilitate the use of the high-speed digital computer, Wilkinson received the Turing Award in 1970 "for his research in numerical analysis to facilitate the use...

Harry M. Yudenfriend

Developer of a roadmap enabling consistent data growth, performance improvements, enhanced resilience, continuous availability, increased scale, and improved efficiency at IBM, Yudenfriend was named an IBM Fellow in 2008 and has served...

John Henry Patterson

Founder of the National Cash Register Company, Patterson was also famous for hiring and later firing Thomas Watson Sr., who went on to become General Manager, then President, of CTR — later...

Ray Harishankar

Significant contributor to IBM's leadership position in Service Oriented Architecture (SOA), reusable asset-based development approaches leveraging SOA, and in the creation of highly reusable IT assets, Harishankar has served as an IBM...

Silvio Micali

Co-inventor of zero-knowledge proofs, Micali is an Italian-born computer scientist known for fundamental contributions to cryptography and information security. He has served as a Professor of Computer Science in MIT's Department of...

Brian Pollard

A member of the team whose research developed the Sirius, which in 1959 claimed to be the smallest and most economically priced computer in the European market, Pollard was a key figure...

Jesse James Garrett

Publisher of the diagram "The Elements of User Experience," a foundational model of user-centered design, Garrett is a user experience designer and co-founder of Adaptive Path, a user experience strategy and design...

Michael T. Goodrich

Pioneer and research leader on efficient parallel and distributed solutions, Goodrich has served as a Chancellor's Professor and chair of the Department of Computer Science of the Donald Bren School of Information...