Information | Details |
---|---|
Date of Birth | February 4, 1943 |
Nationality | American |
Residence | San Francisco, California |
Education | University of California, Berkeley |
Occupation | Computer Scientist, UNIX Developer |
Ken Thompson is an American computer scientist and UNIX developer. He is best known for his work on the UNIX operating system and the C programming language. He was born on February 4, 1943 in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Thompson attended the University of California, Berkeley, where he studied computer science. After graduating in 1966, he joined Bell Labs, where he worked on the Multics operating system. In 1969, he and Dennis Ritchie developed the UNIX operating system, which was designed to be a simpler and more efficient alternative to Multics.
Thompson is also credited with the development of the C programming language, which was designed to be a more efficient alternative to the existing programming languages of the time. He also developed the B programming language, which was the predecessor to C.
Thompson has received numerous awards and honors for his work, including the Turing Award, the National Medal of Technology, and the Japan Prize. He is also a Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery.
Ken Thompson was born on February 4, 1943 in New Orleans, Louisiana. He attended the University of California, Berkeley, where he studied computer science. After graduating in 1966, he joined Bell Labs, where he worked on the Multics operating system.
Thompson is married to Bonnie Thompson, with whom he has two children. He currently resides in San Francisco, California.
Thompson began his career at Bell Labs in 1966, where he worked on the Multics operating system. In 1969, he and Dennis Ritchie developed the UNIX operating system, which was designed to be a simpler and more efficient alternative to Multics.
Thompson is also credited with the development of the C programming language, which was designed to be a more efficient alternative to the existing programming languages of the time. He also developed the B programming language, which was the predecessor to C.
Thompson has also worked on the Plan 9 operating system, which was designed to be a more modern and efficient alternative to UNIX. He is currently a Distinguished Engineer at Google, where he works on the Go programming language.
Thompson has worked with numerous other computer scientists and celebrities, including Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, and Rob Pike. He is also a close friend of Steve Wozniak, the co-founder of Apple.
Thompson is known for his famous quote, "When in doubt, use brute force." He is also known for his quote, "The only way to learn a new programming language is by writing programs in it."
Thompson has been criticized for his involvement in the development of the UNIX operating system, which has been accused of being overly complex and difficult to use. He has also been criticized for his involvement in the development of the C programming language, which has been accused of being overly verbose and difficult to read.
Thompson is an avid chess player, and has competed in numerous tournaments. He is also a fan of the New Orleans Saints, and has been known to attend their games.
Thompson is a Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery, and has received numerous awards and honors for his work, including the Turing Award, the National Medal of Technology, and the Japan Prize. He is also a member of the National Academy of Engineering.