Frederick J. Damerau
Encyclopedia
Frederick J. Damerau was a pioneer of research
on natural language processing
and data mining
.
After earning his B.A. from Cornell University
in 1953, he spent most of his career at IBM
, in the Thomas J. Watson Research Center
.
One of his most influential and ground-breaking papers was "A technique for computer detection and correction of spelling errors" published in 1964. He also developed and patented for IBM the first algorithm
for placing hyphen
s automatically in words.
In 1971 he published the book "Markov Models and Linguistic Theory : An Experimental Study of a Model for English."
After being active in research for over four decades, Fred Damerau died on January 27, 2009.
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
on natural language processing
Natural language processing
Natural language processing is a field of computer science and linguistics concerned with the interactions between computers and human languages; it began as a branch of artificial intelligence....
and data mining
Data mining
Data mining , a relatively young and interdisciplinary field of computer science is the process of discovering new patterns from large data sets involving methods at the intersection of artificial intelligence, machine learning, statistics and database systems...
.
After earning his B.A. from Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
in 1953, he spent most of his career 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...
, in the Thomas J. Watson Research Center
Thomas J. Watson Research Center
The Thomas J. Watson Research Center is the headquarters for the IBM Research Division.The center is on three sites, with the main laboratory in Yorktown Heights, New York, 38 miles north of New York City, a building in Hawthorne, New York, and offices in Cambridge, Massachusetts.- Overview :The...
.
One of his most influential and ground-breaking papers was "A technique for computer detection and correction of spelling errors" published in 1964. He also developed and patented for IBM the first algorithm
Algorithm
In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm is an effective method expressed as a finite list of well-defined instructions for calculating a function. Algorithms are used for calculation, data processing, and automated reasoning...
for placing hyphen
Hyphen
The hyphen is a punctuation mark used to join words and to separate syllables of a single word. The use of hyphens is called hyphenation. The hyphen should not be confused with dashes , which are longer and have different uses, or with the minus sign which is also longer...
s automatically in words.
In 1971 he published the book "Markov Models and Linguistic Theory : An Experimental Study of a Model for English."
After being active in research for over four decades, Fred Damerau died on January 27, 2009.