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From: matloff@heather.ucdavis.edu (Norm Matloff)
Newsgroups: comp.edu
Subject: Re: Theoretical computer scientists know a thing or two
Keywords: theory
Message-ID: <7746@ucdavis.ucdavis.edu>
Date: 28 Sep 90 22:18:59 GMT
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In article <24755@dartvax.Dartmouth.EDU> hugo@griggs.dartmouth.edu (Peter Su) writes:


[I do agree with Peter's point, but just for the sake of accuracy...]


>little about computer science graduate students.  Let me name for you
>a few people with CS PhD's...and a couple who have the equivalent...

>2) Knuth -- Author of TeX

Ph.D. in Math, I believe.  There were none, or most *very* few, degree
programs in CS in his day.

>3) Bill Joy -- CEO of Sun Microsystems (he knows what a bus is).

I don't think he has a Ph.D.  He also is not CEO at Sun, though he is
a cofounder.

>4) John Hennesey -- did the MIPS work at stanford (he knows what a bus
>is too).

I think his Ph.D. is in EE.

>6) Richard Stallman -- Author of Emacs, GCC, etc.

Are you sure he has a Ph.D.?


Again, I do agree with Peter's point.  There is lots of practical work
done in academia.  On the other hand, the other poster is correct to
some extent  --  there certainly *are* some Ph.D.s in CS who "don't
know what a bus is."  I would assert, though, that the same holds
for a number of people in the Silicon Valley.

   Norm