Architects of the Information Society : 35 Years of the Laboratory for Computer Science at MIT

by Simson L. Garfinkel; Hal Abelson (Ed.)

• ISBN13: 9780262071963
• ISBN10: 0262071967
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1999-04-30
• Publisher: Mit Pr

Summary

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Laboratory for Computer Science (LCS) has been responsible for some of the most significant technological achievements of the past few decades. Much of the hardware and software driving the information revolution has been, and continues to be, created at LCS. Anyone who sends and receives email, communicates with colleagues through a LAN, surfs the Web, or makes decisions using a spreadsheet is benefiting from the creativity of LCS members. LCS is an interdepartmental laboratory that brings together faculty, researchers, and students in a broad program of study, research, and experimentation. Their principal goal is to pursue innovations in information technology that will improve people's lives. LCS members have been instrumental in the development of ARPAnet, the Internet, the Web, Ethernet, time-shared computers, UNIX, RSA encryption, the X Windows system, NuBus, and many other technologies. This book, published in celebration of LCS's thirty-fifth anniversary, chronicles its history, achievements, and continued importance to computer science. The essays are complemented by historical photographs.

Author Biography

Simson L. Garfinkel is a freelance writer, computer entrepreneur, and columnist for the Boston Globe. His articles have appeared in more than fifty publications, including ComputerWorld, Forbes, the New York Times, and Technology Review. Hal Abelson is Class of 1922 Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Table of Contents

Preface	vii
The Computer Utility	1	(20)
The Intergalactic Network	21	(20)
The Information Marketplace	41	(30)
The Next Thirty-Five Years	65	(6)
Name Index	71