Alfred Spector
Encyclopedia
Alfred Z. Spector has been Vice President of Research and Special Initiatives at Google
since November 2007. Prior to that he was a researcher and software executive at IBM
. For several years, he was in charge of all of IBM's software research, including the position of Vice President of Strategy and Technology within IBM's Software Group.
Spector was a founder of Transarc
Corporation which built and sold distributed transaction processing and wide area file systems software. Prior to founding Transarc, Spector was an Associate Professor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University
. While there, he served as doctoral advisor to Randy Pausch
. In 2001, Spector received the IEEE Computer Society
's Tsutomu Kanai Award for his contributions to distributed computing systems and applications. He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering
in 2004. In 2006 he was inducted as a Fellow
of the Association for Computing Machinery
.
Spector received his PhD
in Computer Science from Stanford University
and his Bachelor of Arts
degree in Applied Mathematics from Harvard
.
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
since November 2007. Prior to that he was a researcher and software executive at IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
. For several years, he was in charge of all of IBM's software research, including the position of Vice President of Strategy and Technology within IBM's Software Group.
Spector was a founder of Transarc
Transarc
Transarc Corporation was a private Pittsburgh-based software company founded in 1989 by Jeffrey Eppinger, Michael Kazar, Alfred Spector, and Dean Thompson of Carnegie Mellon University...
Corporation which built and sold distributed transaction processing and wide area file systems software. Prior to founding Transarc, Spector was an Associate Professor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....
. While there, he served as doctoral advisor to Randy Pausch
Randy Pausch
Randolph Frederick "Randy" Pausch was an American professor of computer science and human-computer interaction and design at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania....
. In 2001, Spector received the IEEE Computer Society
IEEE Computer Society
The IEEE Computer Society is a professional society of IEEE. Its purpose and scope is “to advance the theory, practice, and application of computer and information processing science and technology” and the “professional standing of its members.” The CS is the largest of 38 technical societies...
's Tsutomu Kanai Award for his contributions to distributed computing systems and applications. He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering
National Academy of Engineering
The National Academy of Engineering is a government-created non-profit institution in the United States, that was founded in 1964 under the same congressional act that led to the founding of the National Academy of Sciences...
in 2004. In 2006 he was inducted as a Fellow
Fellow
A fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
of the Association for Computing Machinery
Association for Computing Machinery
The Association for Computing Machinery is a learned society for computing. It was founded in 1947 as the world's first scientific and educational computing society. Its membership is more than 92,000 as of 2009...
.
Spector received his PhD
PHD
PHD may refer to:*Ph.D., a doctorate of philosophy*Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*PHD finger, a protein sequence*PHD Mountain Software, an outdoor clothing and equipment company*PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in Computer Science from Stanford University
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is a private research university on an campus located near Palo Alto, California. It is situated in the northwestern Santa Clara Valley on the San Francisco Peninsula, approximately northwest of San...
and his Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree in Applied Mathematics from Harvard
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
.