The Computer History Museum today announced its latest inductees as Fellows of the Museum. On Tuesday, October 21, industry pioneers Gordon Bell, Tim Berners-Lee and David Wheeler will be officially inducted at the Museum's annual Fellow Awards Celebration to be held in the Museum's new landmark Silicon Valley building at 1401 N. Shoreline Boulevard in Mountain View, California.
Since 1987, the Computer History Museum has publicly recognized living individuals of outstanding merit who have contributed to the development of computing. Chosen on the basis of accomplishment, Fellows are nominated by a panel composed of computer historians, Museum Fellows, staff and trustees.
In order to properly assess the historical importance of a prospective Fellow's contribution, at least 10 years must have elapsed between the time of the achievement and the nomination. The accomplishment must have strongly influenced the intellectual, disciplinary, or industrial underpinnings of computing.
"The Computer History Museum honors more than just the technological artifacts and innovations of the information age. Computer History is also about the people, their passions, successes, failures and stories," said John Toole, Executive Director and CEO of the Computer History Museum. "This event gives us the opportunity to reflect on the contributions of the pioneers, and to meet them up close."
Gordon Bell is being recognized for his key role in the minicomputer revolution, and for contributions as a computer architect and entrepreneur.
Tim Berners-Lee is being recognized for his seminal contributions to the development of the World Wide Web.
David Wheeler is being honored for his invention of the closed subroutine, his architectural contributions to the ILLIAC, the Cambridge Ring, and computer testing.
The Computer History Museum thanks its sponsors for the event; Headline -- HP, Fellows -- 1185 Design and Microsoft, Sponsor -- Adobe, McCann Erickson and San Jose Mercury News, Patron -- Elaine and Eric Hahn, Maxtor and Sun.
400 people, including Silicon Valley business leaders, entrepreneurs, technologists, and academics, are expected to attend this annual event. Entertainment for the evening will include the Magnolia Jazz Band.
The Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California preserves and presents for posterity the artifacts and stories of the information age. The Museum is home to the world's largest collection of computing-related items -- from hardware (mainframes, PCs, handhelds, key integrated circuits), to software, to computer graphics systems, to the Internet and networking -- and contains many one-of-a-kind and rare objects such as the Cray-1 supercomputer, the Apple I, the WWII ENIGMA, the PalmPilot prototype, and the 1969 Neiman Marcus (Honeywell) "Kitchen Computer." The collection also includes photos, films, videos, documents, and culturally-defining advertising and marketing materials.