LOS ALAMITOS, Calif., 5 March, 2009--A dozen computer scientists and engineers were recently recognized for their technological accomplishments in four different IEEE Computer Society award categories.

Edwin E. Catmull, John E. Warnock, and Charles M. Geschke were named winners of the 2008 Computer Entrepreneur award. Catmull, a computer scientist, is co-founder of Pixar Animation Studios and president of Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios. Warnock and Geschke are co-founders of Adobe. The award is given to individuals whose entrepreneurial leadership is responsible for the growth of some segment of the computer industry.

Jean J. Bartik, Edward J. McCluskey, and Carl A. Petri were named 2008 recipients of the Computer Pioneer Award, which honors significant contributions to concepts and developments that have advanced the state of the art in computing. Bartik was one of the original programmers of the ENIAC computer. McCluskey, professor emeritus at Stanford University, worked on electronic switching systems at Bell Telephone Laboratories from 1955 to 1959 and was the first president of the IEEE Computer Society. Petri invented petrinets at the age of 13 and went on to make numerous contributions to network theory.

Elena Ferrari, John S. Bay, Sajal K. Das, and Timothy W. Finin are this year’s winners of Technical Achievement Awards, which take note of outstanding and innovative contributions to the fields of computer and information science and engineering or computer technology. Ferrari, professor of database management systems at the University of Insubria’s Department of Computer Science and Communication, was recognized for her contributions to secure data management. Bay, chief scientist of the Air Force Research Laboratory’s Information Directorate, was recognized for his work in information technology. Das, director of the Center for Research in Wireless Mobility and Networking at the University of Texas at Arlington, was honored for his contributions to wireless networking. And Finin, a professor in the Computer Science and Electrical Engineering Department at the University of Maryland Baltimore County, received the award for his work in pervasive computing.

James P. Cohoon and Jack W. Davidson shared the 2008 Taylor L. Booth Education Award for their efforts “to transform introductory computer science education through lab-based multimedia pedagogy.” Both teach computer science at the University of Virginia. The award honors renowned teachers in the field of computer science and engineering education.