Rudy Rucker facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Rudy Rucker
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Rucker in 2004
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| Born |
Rudolf von Bitter Rucker
March 22, 1946 Louisville, Kentucky, U.S.
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| Nationality | American |
| Education | St. Xavier High School Swarthmore College (BA) Rutgers University (MS, PhD) |
| Occupation | Author |
| Known for | Ware Tetralogy |
| Spouse(s) |
Sylvia Rucker
(m. 1967; died 2023) |
| Relatives | G. W. F. Hegel (four generations removed) |
Rudolf von Bitter Rucker (born March 22, 1946) is an American writer. He is also a mathematician and computer scientist. Rudy Rucker is famous for his science fiction novels. He helped start the cyberpunk style of writing. He writes both made-up stories and true-story books. His most famous works are the novels in the Ware Tetralogy series. Two of these books, Software and Wetware, won important awards called the Philip K. Dick Award.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Rudy Rucker grew up in Louisville, Kentucky. His father ran a furniture company and later became a priest. His mother's family had a famous ancestor, Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel.
Rucker went to St. Xavier High School. He then studied mathematics at Swarthmore College. He earned a bachelor's degree in 1967. Later, he got his master's and PhD degrees in mathematics from Rutgers University.
Rudy Rucker's Career
Rucker started his career teaching mathematics. He taught at the State University of New York at Geneseo from 1972 to 1978. His students liked him, and he wrote a book called Geometry, Relativity and the Fourth Dimension.
From 1978 to 1980, he taught in Germany at the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg. After that, he taught at Randolph-Macon Women's College for two years. Then, he decided to become a full-time writer for four years.
Becoming a Computer Science Professor
In 1986, Rudy Rucker became a computer science professor. He taught at San José State University. He retired from teaching in 2004. He is now a professor emeritus, which means he keeps his title after retirement.
From 1988 to 1992, he worked as a computer programmer for Autodesk. He programmed special computer models called cellular automata. This work gave him ideas for his book The Hacker and the Ants.
Writing About Math and Philosophy
Rucker has a strong interest in mathematics and philosophy. He wrote books like The Fourth Dimension and Infinity and the Mind. These books explore big ideas about space and endlessness. Infinity and the Mind was re-published several times.
Transrealism: A Unique Writing Style
Rudy Rucker created his own writing style called transrealism. He explained it in his 1983 essay, The Transrealist Manifesto. Transrealism mixes science fiction with the author's real life and feelings. It uses amazing elements to show how people change inside.
Many of Rucker's stories use this style. For example, in Saucer Wisdom, the main character is taken by aliens. Rucker and his publisher jokingly marketed this book as a true story.
His early transreal novel, White Light, explores the idea of infinity. This book was inspired by his time teaching at SUNY Geneseo.
Exploring Scientific Ideas in Novels
Rucker often uses his novels to explain science and math. The Ware Tetralogy series, written between 1982 and 2000, explains how natural selection can be used to create computer software. He also explored this idea in The Hacker and the Ants.
His books also share a special philosophy. Rucker wrote about it in an essay called "The Central Teachings of Mysticism." His non-fiction book, The Lifebox, the Seashell, and the Soul, talks about his different philosophies. It suggests that the world might be like a giant computer program.
Personal Life
In 1967, Rudy Rucker married Sylvia Bogsch Rucker. They had three children together. Sylvia passed away in 2023.
In 2008, Rudy Rucker had a serious health issue. This made him decide to write his autobiography, Nested Scrolls. An autobiography is a book about a person's own life.
Film Work
- He appeared as an actor and speaker in Manual of Evasion LX94, a 1994 film by Edgar Pêra.
Images for kids
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Rudy Rucker in 2004
See also
In Spanish: Rudy Rucker para niños
