Patrick C. Fischer facts for kids

Patrick Carl Fischer (born December 3, 1935 – died August 26, 2011) was an American computer scientist. He was famous for his work in how computers solve problems efficiently (called computational complexity theory) and how information is stored and organized (database theory). He was also unfortunately targeted by the Unabomber.

About Patrick Fischer

Patrick Fischer was born on December 3, 1935, in St. Louis, Missouri. When he was young, his family moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan. His father, Carl H. Fischer, became a professor at the University of Michigan.

Education and Early Career

Patrick followed in his father's footsteps and also attended the University of Michigan. He earned a bachelor's degree in 1957 and a business degree (MBA) in 1958.

He then went to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). There, he earned his Ph.D. in 1962. His research focused on recursion theory, which is about how problems can be solved by breaking them into smaller, similar parts.

After finishing his Ph.D., Fischer began teaching. He joined Harvard University as an assistant professor. Many of his students became important computer scientists themselves.

Teaching and Leadership

In 1965, Fischer moved to Cornell University. He became an associate professor of computer science. He also taught at the University of British Columbia. There, he met his second wife, Charlotte Froese.

Later, he moved to the University of Waterloo in Canada. He was even the head of the computer science department there from 1972 to 1974. He then led the computer science department at Pennsylvania State University.

In 1980, Fischer joined Vanderbilt University. He taught there for 18 years and was the department chair for 15 of those years. He retired in 1998.

Family and Legacy

Patrick Fischer passed away on August 26, 2011, in Rockville, Maryland. He died from stomach cancer.

Like his father, Patrick Fischer became a fellow of the Society of Actuaries. This group includes experts who study financial risks. His second wife, Charlotte Froese Fischer, was also a computer science professor. His brother, Michael J. Fischer, is also a computer science professor at Yale University.

Fischer's Computer Science Research

Patrick Fischer was a pioneer in the field of computational complexity. This area of computer science looks at how much time and memory a computer needs to solve a problem. He helped make theoretical computer science its own field, separate from math or electrical engineering.

Early Work on Algorithms

Fischer's early research looked at how different computer models affect how quickly problems are solved. For example, he showed how to find prime numbers using a simple type of computer called a cellular automaton. This work helped set the stage for later research on parallel algorithms, which are ways for computers to solve many parts of a problem at the same time.

With his colleagues, Fischer also studied counter machines. These are simple computers that can count. Their work showed that these machines also follow rules about how much time and space they need to solve problems.

Leading the Field

Fischer helped create SIGACT in 1968. This is a special group for people interested in algorithms and computation theory. He was its first leader.

He also started the annual Symposium on Theory of Computing. This is one of the most important conferences for theoretical computer science. He led this conference five times.

Database Research

In the 1980s, Fischer started focusing on database theory. This field is about how information is stored, organized, and retrieved in computer databases.

His research looked at how databases understand information (their semantics). He also studied metadata, which is data about data. Fischer did important work on the nested relational model of databases. In this model, information in a database can be organized in a more complex way, like folders within folders. His work helped create the mathematical rules for query languages. These are the languages used to ask questions and get information from databases, like those used by major websites today.

Fischer was also an expert in information systems. He studied how schools and universities use these systems.

Targeted by the Unabomber

Ted Kaczynski, known as the Unabomber, was a former math student at the University of Michigan. Patrick Fischer's father was a professor there.

In 1982, Kaczynski sent a mail bomb to Patrick Fischer. The bomb was sent to his address at Penn State. It was then forwarded to Vanderbilt University. On May 5, Fischer's secretary, Janet Smith, opened the package. She was injured and had to stay in the hospital for three weeks.

Fischer said he had never met Kaczynski. He thought he might have been targeted because he moved from pure math to theoretical computer science. Kaczynski was not caught until 1996.