Have you ever wondered who invented the internet? If you did, then perhaps the person that we will give tribute today will fascinate you. The Geek of the Month for March is the person most often called ‘The Father of the Internet”. He's no other than Vint Cerf.If you want to learn more about the life of internet pioneer Vint Cerf, you might want to read these exiting facts that we have compiled about him:
Vint Cerf was in born June 23, 1943. Cerf grew up in Los Angeles. He did very well in school and showed a strong aptitude for math. He had an unusual style of dress for a school kid. He wore a jacket and tie most days. Cerf is still known for his impeccable style. He is usually seen in three-piece suits.
As a child, Cerf began to develop an interest in computers. He attended Stanford and majored in mathematics, but continued to grow more interested in computing. "There was something amazingly enticing about programming," said Cerf. "You created your own universe and you were master of it. The computer would do anything you programmed it to do. It was this unbelievable sandbox in which every grain of sand was under your control."
Career
Cerf's first job after obtaining his B.S. in Math from Stanford University was at IBM, where he worked for less than two years as a systems engineer supporting QUIKTRAN. He left IBM to become a principal programmer at UCLA, where he also "participated in development of ARPANET host protocol specifications”; he then became an assistant professor at Stanford University where he "conducted research on packet network interconnection protocols and co-designed the DoD TCP/IP protocol suite with Robert E. Kahn.In 1997, Cerf joined the Board of Trustees of Gallaudet University. He is hearing impaired.
Cerf joined the board of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) in 1999, and served until the end of 2007; he used to be the ICANN Chair.
Cerf is a member of the Bulgarian President Georgi Parvanov's IT Advisory Council, a group created by Presidential Decree on March 8, 2002. He is also a member of the Advisory Board of Eurasia Group, the political risk consultancy.
Cerf is also working on the Interplanetary Internet, together with NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. It will be a new standard to communicate from planet to planet, using radio/laser communications that are highly tolerant to signal degradation.
In February 2006, Cerf testified before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation's Hearing on “Network Neutrality”.
Cerf currently serves on the board of advisors of Scientists and Engineers for America, an organization focused on promoting sound science in American government.
Cerf has worked for Google as its Vice President and Chief Internet Evangelist since September 2005.
Awards and honors
Cerf has received a number of honorary degrees, including doctorates, from the University of the Balearic Islands, ETH in Switzerland, Capitol College, Gettysburg College, George Mason University, University of Pisa, University of Rovira and Virgili (Tarragona, Spain), Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, University of Lulea (Sweden), University of Twente (Netherlands), Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, and Brooklyn Polytechnic.
Further awards include:
* Prince of Asturias award for science and technology
* Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery
* Yuri Rubinsky Memorial Award
* SIGCOMM Award for "contributions to the Internet [spanning] more than 25 years, from development of the fundamental TCP/IP protocols".
* In December 1997 he, along with his partner Robert E. Kahn, was presented with the National Medal of Technology by President Bill Clinton, "for creating and sustaining development of Internet Protocols and continuing to provide leadership in the emerging industry of internetworking."
* He received the Living Legend Medal from the Library of Congress in April 2000
* Dr. Cerf was selected as a Fellow of the Association for Women in Science (AWIS) in 2000
* Cerf and Kahn were the winners of the Turing Award for 2004, for their "pioneering work on internetworking, including .. the Internet's basic communications protocols ..and for inspired leadership in networking."
* In November 2005, Vinton Cerf and Kahn were awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush for their contributions to the creation of the Internet.
* He and Robert Kahn were inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in May 2006
* He and Robert Kahn were awarded the Japan Prize in January 2
Further awards include:
* Prince of Asturias award for science and technology
* Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery
* Yuri Rubinsky Memorial Award
* SIGCOMM Award for "contributions to the Internet [spanning] more than 25 years, from development of the fundamental TCP/IP protocols".
* In December 1997 he, along with his partner Robert E. Kahn, was presented with the National Medal of Technology by President Bill Clinton, "for creating and sustaining development of Internet Protocols and continuing to provide leadership in the emerging industry of internetworking."
* He received the Living Legend Medal from the Library of Congress in April 2000
* Dr. Cerf was selected as a Fellow of the Association for Women in Science (AWIS) in 2000
* Cerf and Kahn were the winners of the Turing Award for 2004, for their "pioneering work on internetworking, including .. the Internet's basic communications protocols ..and for inspired leadership in networking."
* In November 2005, Vinton Cerf and Kahn were awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush for their contributions to the creation of the Internet.
* He and Robert Kahn were inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in May 2006
* He and Robert Kahn were awarded the Japan Prize in January 2
Quotes
"The Internet is based on a layered, end-to-end model that allows people at each level of the network to innovate free of any central control. By placing intelligence at the edges rather than control in the middle of the network, the Internet has created a platform for innovation."
-Vint Cerf
"They say a year in the Internet business is like a dog year.. equivalent to seven years in a regular person's life. In other words, it's evolving fast and faster."
-Vint Cerf
"Science fiction does not remain fiction for long. And certainly not on the Internet."
-Vint Cerf
"What's wonderful about Google is that as long as you bring ideas to the table, it doesn't matter what else is going on."
-Vint Cerf
"The remarkable social impact and economic success of the Internet is in many ways directly attributable to the architectural characteristics that were part of its design. The Internet was designed with no gatekeepers over new content or services."
-Vint Cerf
"I expect to see a lot of household appliances on the Net by 2010, as well as autos and other mobile devices."
-Vint Cerf
"The Internet is based on a layered, end-to-end model that allows people at each level of the network to innovate free of any central control. By placing intelligence at the edges rather than control in the middle of the network, the Internet has created a platform for innovation."
-Vint Cerf
"They say a year in the Internet business is like a dog year.. equivalent to seven years in a regular person's life. In other words, it's evolving fast and faster."
-Vint Cerf
"Science fiction does not remain fiction for long. And certainly not on the Internet."
-Vint Cerf
"What's wonderful about Google is that as long as you bring ideas to the table, it doesn't matter what else is going on."
-Vint Cerf
"The remarkable social impact and economic success of the Internet is in many ways directly attributable to the architectural characteristics that were part of its design. The Internet was designed with no gatekeepers over new content or services."
-Vint Cerf
"I expect to see a lot of household appliances on the Net by 2010, as well as autos and other mobile devices."
-Vint Cerf
Special Thanks to Ibiblio.org and Wikipedia.org
