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towards PARC
author Henry Thompson <ht@markup.co.uk>
date Mon, 18 Nov 2024 14:42:31 +0000
parents fd066d630735
children ff910d6ad9a2
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46:fd066d630735 47:206f4ebc817c
271 the word as used in ordinary language. 271 the word as used in ordinary language.
272 272
273 273
274 ------------ 274 ------------
275 275
276 BCS was born in Montreal, Canada, on 1 December 1949, growing up there 276 Brian Cantwell Smith was born in Montreal, Canada, on 1 December 1949.
277 and later in Cambridge, Massachusetts, he remains a Canadian citizen. 277 Growing up first there and later in Cambridge, Massachusetts, he
278 Multiple allegiances, sometimes conflicting but mostly complementary, 278 remains a Canadian citizen. Multiple allegiances, sometimes
279 have characterized both his personal and intellectual life ever since. 279 conflicting but mostly complementary, have characterized both his
280 personal and intellectual life ever since.
280 281
281 He started undergraduate study at Oberlin College in Ohio in 1967, 282 He started undergraduate study at Oberlin College in Ohio in 1967,
282 where his interests included both physics and religion but left after 283 where his interests included both physics and religion but left after
283 only two years, travelling first to visit the Quaker community Argenta, 284 only two years, travelling first to visit the Quaker community Argenta,
284 British Columbia, and ending up in Ottawa where he started work as a 285 British Columbia, and ending up in Ottawa where he started work as a
289 microcomputers, in machine language, for experimental control and data 290 microcomputers, in machine language, for experimental control and data
290 gathering. 291 gathering.
291 292
292 When the project ended he moved back to the family home in Cambridge, 293 When the project ended he moved back to the family home in Cambridge,
293 and began taking classes at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology 294 and began taking classes at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
294 (MIT), with an interest in what was then knows as Social Inquiry, in 295 (MIT), with an interest in what was then known as Social Inquiry, in
295 particular the politics of high technology. But in quickly became 296 particular the politics of high technology. But it quickly became
296 clear to him that the understanding of computing that the social 297 clear to him that the understanding of computing that the social
297 scientists were critiquing was not the computing that I knew as a 298 scientists were critiquing was not the computing that he knew as a
298 programmer, what he later came to refer to as "computing in the wild". 299 programmer, what he later came to refer to as "computing in the wild".
299 He realised that he needed to get clear on what computing really is, 300 He realised that he needed to get clear on what computing really is,
300 so that I could legitimately critique it. He thought he had to go into 301 so that he could legitimately critique it. He thought he had to go into
301 the heart of the beast, as it were, so applied for the PhD program in 302 the heart of the beast, as it were, so applied for the PhD program in
302 Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT and began taking 303 Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT and began taking
303 classes. 304 classes.
304 305
305 When the MIT administration discovered he didn't have an undergraduate 306 When the MIT administration discovered Smith didn't have an
306 degree, Patrick Winston, the newly-appointed head of the Artificial 307 undergraduate degree, Patrick Winston, the newly-appointed head of the
307 Intelligence Laboratory, gave Smith an informal oral exam in topics 308 Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, gave Smith an informal oral exam
308 from the MIT undergraduate computer science curriculum and awarded him 309 in topics from the MIT undergraduate computer science curriculum and
309 the credits necessary for a degree, clearing the way for his admission 310 awarded him the credits necessary for a degree, clearing the way for
310 to the graduate program. 311 his admission to the graduate program.
311 312
313 In 1977 Terry Winograd, who had left MIT to join the Computer Science
314 Lab at the Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC), invited Smith to
315 spend the summer in the Understander Group there, where he joined the
316 in the development of KRL, a Knowledge Representation Language, which
317 came to embody some of the ideas that were developed in his Masters
318 and PhD dissertations.