Mourning Great Computer Scientist Edsger Wybe Dijkstra
On August 8, 2002, I like Newsletter, who often look at the eXtremeProgramming electronic group. Suddenly I saw the rare farsis on this group, and the topic of Grady Booch was Dijkstra. I thought that everyone was discussing what difficulties proposed by Professor Dijkstra, and I knew that it was a similar to a famous introduction. After many years of struggle with cancer, the great Netherlands computer scientist Edsger Wybe Dijkstra has been in 2002 On August 6th in Netherlands Nuenen and the world! 72 years old.
It turns out that!
This Dijkstra is the Dijkstra that proposes "GOTO Harmstick", which is the number of Dijkstra, which proposes the number of signals and PV, solves interesting "philosophers' dinner" problem, the creator of Dijkstra shortest path algorithm, the first Algol 60 compilers and implementors, the designers and developers of the operating system, those who are also known as the greatest computer scientist with DE KNuth.
The suicide of Allantu is, before the century, Feng Niman has died for many years. As the employee in this relatively emerging line, we seem to be very accustomed to each name to read from the book. They are still a living person who is in the world is the pride of our era. Whether it is still strong build DE Knuth, Fred Brooks, Dennis Ritchie, Ken Thompson, Brian Kernighan, is the prime of life of Bjarne Stroustrup, Grady Booch, Steve McConnell, Andy Koenig, Robert Martin, Kent Becker, Martin Fowler, James Gosling, Or is it a young, a gli-haired Linus Trovalds, Andrei Alexandrescu, and we seem to have used to think that as long as an email, the names on these books will become your friend. The Internet turned the earth into a large village, each of the distances.
But unfortunately, the Internet cannot shorten the spanning of life and death. Today, a real superstar is falling in front of us! As an ordinary programmer, I feel sorry and sad from my heart. This kind of grief, when I first learned about the death of Richard Stevens two and a half, but it would be so strong today. After all, when I understand the programming or understand, I know that there is a person called Dijkstra advises everyone not to abuse goto, and before that, Goto is in my opinion. The mystery of programming. After I learned the course of learning algorithms, data structures, operating systems, Dijkstra, this name, jumped from the book again and again, and I am getting deeper with this name. I know that he is crazy in his later years C , which is almost the greatest honor of this C Fan. I have thought about it. One day, I will write an email to him, nothing to say, just want to express my personal gratitude and respect. Unexpectedly, there is no chance to even even this opportunity!
Dijkstra guides and will continue to guide all the programmers on this planet, his contribution and impact will be in the world, let us wish him!
[Attached] GRADY BOOCH introduction to Dijkstra
> Professor Edsger Wybe Dijkstra, a noted pioneer of the science and> industry of computing, died after a long struggle with cancer on 6> August 2002 at his home in Nuenen, the Netherlands. >> Dijkstra was born in 1930 in Rotterdam, The netherlands, the son of a> chemist father and a mathematician mother. He graduated from the> Gymnasium Erasmianum in Rotterdam and obtained degrees in mathematics> and theoretical physics from the University of Leyden and a Ph.D. in> computing science from the University . of Amsterdam He worked as a> programmer at the Mathematisch Centrum, Amsterdam, 1952-62; was> professor of mathematics, Eindhoven University of Technology,> 1962-1984; and was a Burroughs Corporation research fellow, 1973-1984> He. held the Schlumberger Centennial Chair in Computing Sciences at the> University of Texas at Austin, 1984-1999, and retired as Professor> Emeritus in 1999. >> Dijkstra is survived by his wife of over forty years, Maria (Ria) C.> Dijkstra Debets, by three children, Marcus J., Femke E., and computer> scientist Rutger M. Dijkstra, and by two grandchildren. >> Dijkstra was the 1972 recipient of the ACM Turing Award, often viewed> as the Nobel Prize for computing. He was a member of the Netherlands> Royal Academy of Arts and Sciences, a member of the American Academy> of Arts and Sciences, and a Distinguished Fellow of the British> Computer Society. He received the 1974 AFIPS Harry Goode Award, the> 1982 IEEE Computer Pioneer Award, And The 1989 ACM Sigcse Award for> Outstanding Contributions to Computer Science Education. Athens>
University of Economics awarded him an honorary doctorate in 2001. In> 2002, the C & C Foundation of Japan recognized Dijkstra "for his> pioneering contributions to the establishment of the scientific basis> for computer software through creative research in basic software> theory, algorithm theory , structured programming, and semaphores ". >> Dijkstra is renowned for the insight that mathematical logic is and> must be the basis for sensible computer program construction and for> his contributions to mathematical methodology. He is responsible for> the idea of building operating systems as explicitly synchronized> sequential processes, for the formal development of computer programs,> and for the intellectual foundations for the disciplined control of> nondeterminacy. He is well known for his amazingly efficient shortest> path algorithm and for having designed and coded the first Algol 60> Compiler. He Was Famously The Leader in The Abolition of the Goto> Statement from Progra mming. >> Dijkstra was a prodigious writer. His entire collection of over> thirteen hundred written works was digitally scanned and is accessible> at http://www.cs.utexas.edu/users/EWD. He also corresponded regularly> with hundreds of friends and colleagues over the years --not by email> but by conventional post. He strenuously preferred the fountain pen to> the computer in producing his scholarly output and letters. >> Dijkstra was notorious for his wit, eloquence, and way WITH WORDS,> SUCH AS in His Remark "The Question of Whather Computers Can Think IS> Like The Question of Whather Submarines CAN Swim"; His Advice to A>
promising researcher, who asked how to select a topic for research:> "Do only what only you can do"; and his remark in his Turing Award> lecture "In their capacity as a tool, computers will be but a ripple> on the surface of our culture. in their capacity as intellectual> challenge, they are without precedent in the cultural history of> mankind. ">> Dijkstra enriched the language of computing with many concepts and> phrases, such as structured programming, separation of concerns, > synchronization, deadly embrace, dining philosophers, weakest> precondition, guarded command, the excluded miracle, and the famous> "semaphores" for controlling computer processes. The Oxford English> Dictionary cites his use of the words "vector" and "stack" in a> computing context. >> Dijkstra enjoyed playing Mozart for his friends on his Boesendorfer> piano. He and his wife had a fondness for exploring state and national> parks in their Volkswagen bus, dubbed the Touring Machine, in which he> w rote many technical papers. >> Throughout his scientific career, Dijkstra formulated and pursued the> highest academic ideals of scientific rigour untainted by commercial,> managerial, or political considerations. Simplicity, beauty, and> eloquence were his hallmarks, and his uncompromising insistence on> elegance in programming and mathematics was an inspiration to> thousands. He judged his own work by the highest standards and set a> continuing challenge to his many friends to do the same. For the rest,> he willingly undertook the role of Socrates , That of a gadfly to>
