MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA -- 06/18/08 --
The Computer History Museum (CHM) today
announced that Jean Bartik, Bob Metcalfe and Linus Torvalds will join its
prestigious Hall of Fellows as recipients of the 2008 Fellow Awards. The
Award recipients will be inducted at a formal Gala Ceremony on Oct. 21,
where technology industry leaders and supporters will join together to
celebrate the inductees' contribution and impact on computing history.
"We are living in one of the most remarkable periods in human history, and
the influential people in our Hall of Fellows are major contributors to the
technology we enjoy," said Len Shustek, Chairman of the Computer History
Museum's Board of Trustees. "We are excited to honor these distinguished
technology luminaries. They have truly bettered our lives and our society,
and we are proud to have a part in highlighting and preserving their
stories for future generations."
The celebration of the Fellow Awards is an extension of the Computer
History Museum's overarching vision to explore the computing revolution and
its impact on the human experience. Currently, the Museum is home to the
largest international collection of computing artifacts in the world. Since
1987, the Computer History Museum's annual Fellow Awards honors individuals
of outstanding merit who have significantly contributed to both the
advancement of computing history and to the evolution of the information
age.
The 2008 Fellows are recognized for their creativity, persistence, vision
and worldwide influence in the field of computing:
-- Jean Bartik was one of the first programmers of the groundbreaking
ENIAC computing system in 1945. She later assisted in converting the ENIAC
system into one of the first stored-program computers.
-- Bob Metcalfe led the invention, standardization, and commercialization
of Ethernet.
-- Linus Torvalds created the Linux kernel and oversaw open source
development of the widely-used Linux operating system.
Chosen on the basis of achievement, Fellows are nominated by members of the
technology community and then selected by a respected panel composed of the
Computer History Museum's executives, technology historians, industry
peers, and previous Fellow Awards recipients. On Oct. 21, 2008, the
technology world's top leaders, and executives assemble with the CHM
community at the Gala Ceremony to pay tribute to these esteemed technology
heroes. In addition to the Gala event dedicated to honoring the Fellows,
the Museum also captures an oral history of each Award recipient as a
significant addition to its computing history collection.
For more information on the Fellow Awards and the Gala Ceremony, please
visit http://www.computerhistory.org/fellows.
About the Computer History Museum
The Computer History Museum (CHM) in Mountain View, Calif., is a nonprofit
organization with a 29-year history. The Museum is dedicated to the
preservation and celebration of computing history, and is home to the
largest international collection of computing artifacts in the world,
encompassing computer hardware, software, documentation, ephemera,
photographs and moving images.
CHM brings computing history to life through an acclaimed speaker series,
dynamic website, onsite tours, as well as physical and online exhibits.
Current exhibits include "Charles Babbage's Difference Engine No. 2,"
"Mastering the Game: A History of Computer Chess," "Innovation in the
Valley" -- a look at Silicon Valley startups -- and the unique "Visible
Storage Gallery," featuring over 600 key objects from the collection.
A signature "Timeline of Computing History" exhibit will open in the fall
of 2009.
For more information, visit www.computerhistory.org or call 650-810-1010.
Media Contact:
Fiona Tang
Computer History Museum
Email Contact
650-810-1036
