Jane Wilhelms facts for kids

Jane Patricia Wilhelms was a talented American scientist who worked as both a biologist and a computer scientist. She was famous for her important work in computer graphics. This included making realistic computer models of humans and animals, and figuring out how objects in computer animations don't crash into each other. She also helped create ways to show complex scientific data using computers. Jane Wilhelms was a professor of computer science at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She passed away on March 26, 2005.

Jane Wilhelms' Early Life and Studies

Jane Wilhelms started her journey as a biologist. She earned her first degree in zoology, which is the study of animals, from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Later, she got a master's degree from Stanford University.

For many years, Jane taught anatomy (the study of body structures) and physiology (the study of how the body works) at a college.

Switching to Computer Science

In the 1980s, Jane decided to go back to school to study computer science. She attended the University of California, Berkeley. While she was there, she also got to work as a graphics programmer at Lucasfilm. This was a great chance to use her skills in a creative way!

She earned another master's degree in computer science. In 1985, she completed her Ph.D., which is the highest university degree. Her research focused on how to use computers to simulate, or imitate, the movements of bodies like humans and robots.

Career at UC Santa Cruz

After finishing her studies, Jane Wilhelms joined the faculty at the University of California, Santa Cruz in 1985. She became the leader of the UC Santa Cruz Scientific Visualization Laboratory. This lab worked on showing scientific information using computer graphics.

Jane Wilhelms sadly passed away from cancer on March 26, 2005, when she was 56 years old. Her work greatly influenced how we see and understand computer graphics and scientific data today.