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're 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.
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, please visit www.computerhistory.org or call 650.810.1010.
PR Team
pr@computerhistory.org
(650) 810-1059
