Robert Kahn (computer scientist) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Robert Kahn
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Kahn in Geneva, May 2013
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Robert Elliot Kahn
December 23, 1938 Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
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| Alma mater | City College of New York (BEE) Princeton University (MA, PhD) |
| Known for | TCP/IP |
| Spouse(s) | Patrice Ann Lyons |
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| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Telecommunications, networking |
| Institutions | Bell Labs MIT BBN DARPA Corporation for National Research Initiatives |
| Thesis | Some problems in the sampling and modulation of signals (1964) |
| Doctoral advisor | Bede Liu |
Robert Elliot Kahn (born December 23, 1938) is an American electrical engineer. He is famous for helping to create the basic rules (called protocols) that make the internet work. These rules are known as Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and Internet Protocol (IP), or simply TCP/IP.
In 2004, Kahn and his partner, Vint Cerf, won the Turing Award. This award is like the "Nobel Prize of computing" and recognized their important work on TCP/IP.
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Early Life and Education
Robert Elliot Kahn was born in December 1938 in New York. His parents were Beatrice Pauline and Lawrence Kahn. He came from an Ashkenazi Jewish family.
He studied electrical engineering at the City College of New York. He earned his first degree there in 1960. Then, he went to Princeton University. He received his Master's degree in 1962 and his Ph.D. (doctorate) in 1964. Both of these advanced degrees were also in electrical engineering.
Building the Internet: Kahn's Career
Kahn first worked at a company called Bolt Beranek and Newman Inc.. There, he was a main designer for the ARPANET. This was an early computer network that helped lead to the internet.
In 1972, he showed how powerful the ARPANET was. He connected 20 different computers at a big conference. This event made many people realize that packet switching was a real and useful technology. Packet switching is how data is broken into small pieces (packets) and sent across a network.
Later in 1972, Kahn joined DARPA. This is a U.S. government agency that works on new technologies. At DARPA, he helped create the TCP/IP protocols. These rules were key for connecting different computer networks together.
He also started a huge computer research program for the U.S. government. It was called the Strategic Computing Initiative.
After 13 years at DARPA, Kahn started his own organization in 1986. It is called the Corporation for National Research Initiatives (CNRI). He is still its chairman, CEO, and president today.
How the Internet Works: TCP/IP
While working on a satellite network project called SATNET, Kahn had ideas for what became the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP). This new protocol was meant to replace an older one used in the ARPANET. TCP was very important for creating the internet as we know it. It allowed computers and networks worldwide to talk to each other. This worked no matter what kind of hardware or software they used.
To make this happen, TCP was designed with several key features:
- Small parts of the network could talk to each other. They did this through special computers called gateways (now called routers). These devices only forwarded the data packets.
- No single part of the network could fail and stop the whole network. Also, no single part could control the entire network.
- Each piece of information sent was given a sequence number. This made sure the information arrived in the correct order. It also helped detect if any pieces were lost.
- When a computer sent information, it would know it was received. The receiving computer would send back a special message called an acknowledgement (ACK).
- If information was lost, it would be sent again. This happened if the sending computer did not get an acknowledgement within a certain time.
- Every piece of information included a checksum. This was a special code calculated by the sender. The receiver checked it to make sure the information was not damaged during its journey.
Vint Cerf joined Kahn on this project in 1973. Together, they finished an early version of TCP. Later, the protocol was split into two parts:
- TCP would handle communication between two computers.
- Internet Protocol (IP) would handle communication between different networks.
These two parts, TCP and IP, are usually called TCP/IP. They form the foundation of the modern Internet. In 1992, Kahn and Cerf also helped start the Internet Society. This group helps guide internet standards, education, and policies.
Awards and Honors
Robert Kahn has received many awards for his groundbreaking work.
- In 1981, he became an IEEE fellow for his work in packet switching technology.
- He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1987.
- In 1993, he received the SIGCOMM Award for his vision and leadership.
- He shared the 2004 Turing Award with Vint Cerf. This was for their "pioneering work on internetworking" and for their leadership.
- In 2005, he received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. This is one of the highest civilian awards in the United States.
- He was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2006.
- He also became a Fellow of the Computer History Museum in 2006.
- In 2008, he received the Japan Prize for his work in information and communication technology.
- In 2012, Kahn was inducted into the Internet Hall of Fame.
- In 2013, he was one of the first people to receive the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering.
- In 2024, Kahn received the IEEE Medal of Honor. This is the highest award given by the IEEE.
Honorary Degrees
Kahn has received special honorary degrees from many universities around the world. These include Princeton University, University of Pavia, and ETH Zurich. An honorary degree is given to someone to recognize their great achievements, even if they didn't study there.
See Also
