Peter Freeman

The profession of IT Computing's paradigm

Trying to categorize computing as engineering, science, or math is fruitless; we have our own paradigm.

Cyberinfrastructure for Science and Engineering: Promises and Challenges

It is now clear that information technology (IT) construed broadly has the power to revolutionize all areas of science and engineering (S&E) research and education. If exploited, this transformative power can change S&E forever. The National Science Foundation (NSF) is working toward this end, and, as a result, past efforts in supercomputing and high-performance networking are being subsumed into a broader, integrated vision of a more capable, ubiquitous, and accessible cyberinfrastructure (CI). We cannot attain this overnight, or alone, or without substantial research in computer science and engineering. This paper will outline the potential for revolution, the vision of CI, some of the challenges, and a possible path toward reaching that vision.

Back to experimentation

Three forward-looking projects depend on experimentation under real-world conditions.

Building a foundation for the future of software engineering

PCT No. PCT/NO80/00044 Sec. 371 Date Jul. 31, 1981 Sec. 102(e) Date Jul. 31, 1981 PCT Filed Dec. 18, 1980 PCT Pub. No. WO81/01864 PCT Pub. Date Jul. 9, 1981.A method and an apparatus for collecting oil and gas flowing uncontrolled into a body of water beneath the water surface, especially in a blow-out from a point at the sea bed. The oil and gas discharged from the blow-out location is caught and ascends towards the surface within a tubular shell body and the gas is collected in a floating gas bell provided at the upper end portion of the shell body and forming a gas or liquid trap against the surrounding water in that it has an outer wall projecting downwards and surrounding an upper portion of the shell body. The gas is thus automatically placed under a controllable positive pressure in that the displacement of the gas bell in the medium within the shell body can be varied by ballast means. The apparatus includes an upper member (2) constituting a gas-collecting bell, and a lower member (1) constituted by the shell body. The upper member (2) comprises a shell-body-enclosing outer wall (7) and an inner wall (8) enclosed by the shell body (1), which walls (7, 8) are mutually sealingly connected at the top (9) so as to form an annular compartment (10) which is open at the bottom and in which a top part (5) of the shell body (1) projects, a bottom part (11) which, at the bottom of the inner wall (8), closes the central space (12) defined by the inner wall (8), and ballast tanks (13) for adjusting the displacement of the upper member (2) in the medium within the shell body (1).

Effective computer science

As Peter Likins very succinctly noted at Snowbird in 1992 [Likins 1992], the compact between science and society that has shaped so much of what we do in higher education is essentially dead. The changes in public expectations are by now becoming obvious. Computer science is heavily involved in the debates about these changes because of its unique character and the centrality of computing to so much of modern life. The challenge facing us as computer scientists is to make sure that computer science as a discipline of education and research does not, in fact, become irrelevant. How can this be? How can we be so important in so many ways and at the same time be in danger of becoming irrelevant? The reasons are multiple and important, but need not be detailed here. Whatever the causes, the reality is that we cannot continue our university missions of education, research, and service in the same manner as in the past. In fact, I believe that “Computing the Future” [Hartmanis and Lin 1992] has it right; it is also an excellent starting point for entering the all-important discussion of where we are headed.1 Computing is going to be used more and more whether or not computer scientists are inuolued. We must find ways to make progress on the intellectual questions and educational agendas that motivate us, while earning enough of society’s resources to support those endeavors. If we don’t, then we may well discover that as a field we have become irrelevant. Let me suggest a path that I call effective computer science, consisting of a community of scholars with a strong intellectual core of computer science, coupled with emphasis areas that focus on interactions with other disciplines. Note the prominence of “intellectual core of computer science.” We should in no way compromise on that. Theory (as a subdiscipline) is an essential component, for example, as are formalisms in a number of other areas—many of which have yet to be developed!

Software engineering education: Status and prospects

Software engineering is an emerging field aimed at improving the quality of computer software and the processess used to produce it. The field seeks to transform software creation from an art into an engineering discipline. Efforts have recently begun to teach software engineering concepts to university students and to practicing professionals in industry and government. This paper surveys past and present efforts in software engineering education, describes some existing problems in training software engineers, and outlines likely future developments in educational programs. The outline of a curriculum for a professional masters degree in software engineering is included.

Special Feature Software Engineering Concepts and Computer Science Curricula

The field of software engineering is beginning to emerge as an area of study dealing with the problems and methods involved in producing software systems. Within recent years, it has become apparent that programming is a much harder task than it was once thought to be, especially for large production-oriented systems involving a number of people. This concern has led to the need for educating software engineering specialists to work on the construction of such systems.

Research challenges in future networks: a report from US-Japan workshop on future networks

A US-Japan Workshop on Future Networks was held in Palo Alto, CA on October 31 - November 1, 2008. This workshop brought together leading US and Japanese network researchers and network research infrastructure developers who are interested in future networks. The focus was on research issues and experimental infrastructure to support research on future generation networks. The goal was to foster cooperation and communication between peers in the two countries. Through this workshop, a number of research challenges were identified. The workshop also made recommendations to: create a new funding mechanism to foster special collaborations in networking and experimentation, extend current national testbeds with international connectivity; and urge the respective governments to exert strong leadership to ensure that collaborative research for creating future networks is carried out.

The GENI Vision: Origins, Early History, Possible Futures

This paper presents the vision of GENI as first formulated at the National Science Foundation (NSF) in early 2004 and expanded during 2004–2007, identifies what forces shaped the basic idea during its formation, and comments on where it may go in the future. The paper describes motivations, concepts, and history—not technical details—that were in play between 2004 and 2007 as the GENI Project was being formulated and launched, and that continue today. Understanding the original vision and goals, basic ideas, and motivations of the GENI Project; the context in which it emerged; and the forces that shaped the Project will enable you to understand better the technical details and changes that occur in the future. I end with some comments about possible futures for GENI.

Ubiquity symposium: Is the Symposium Question Harmful?: Consideration of the Question 'What is Computation?' Considered Harmful

<b>Editors Introduction</b><br /><i>In this fifteenth piece to the Ubiquity symposium discussing What is computation? Peter A. Freeman considers the theoretical and practical aspects of the question.</i><br /><br />Peter J. Denning<br />Editor