David Musser
Encyclopedia
David Musser is a professor of computer science
at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
in Troy, New York
, U.S.
He is known for his work in generic programming
, particularly as applied to C++
. His research with Alexander Stepanov
led to the creation of the C++ Standard Template Library
(STL). In 1997, he developed the sorting algorithm
called Introsort
(also known as introspective sort).
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Stephen Van Rensselaer established the Rensselaer School on November 5, 1824 with a letter to the Rev. Dr. Samuel Blatchford, in which van Rensselaer asked Blatchford to serve as the first president. Within the letter he set down several orders of business. He appointed Amos Eaton as the school's...
in Troy, New York
Troy, New York
Troy is a city in the US State of New York and the seat of Rensselaer County. Troy is located on the western edge of Rensselaer County and on the eastern bank of the Hudson River. Troy has close ties to the nearby cities of Albany and Schenectady, forming a region popularly called the Capital...
, U.S.
He is known for his work in generic programming
Generic programming
In a broad definition, generic programming is a style of computer programming in which algorithms are written in terms of to-be-specified-later types that are then instantiated when needed for specific types provided as parameters...
, particularly as applied to C++
C++
C++ is a statically typed, free-form, multi-paradigm, compiled, general-purpose programming language. It is regarded as an intermediate-level language, as it comprises a combination of both high-level and low-level language features. It was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup starting in 1979 at Bell...
. His research with Alexander Stepanov
Alexander Stepanov
Alexander Alexandrovich Stepanov is the primary designer and implementer of the C++ Standard Template Library, which he started to develop around 1992 while employed at HP Labs...
led to the creation of the C++ Standard Template Library
Standard Template Library
The Standard Template Library is a C++ software library which later evolved into the C++ Standard Library. It provides four components called algorithms, containers, functors, and iterators. More specifically, the C++ Standard Library is based on the STL published by SGI. Both include some...
(STL). In 1997, he developed the sorting algorithm
Sorting algorithm
In computer science, a sorting algorithm is an algorithm that puts elements of a list in a certain order. The most-used orders are numerical order and lexicographical order...
called Introsort
Introsort
Introsort or introspective sort is a sorting algorithm designed by David Musser in 1997. It begins with quicksort and switches to heapsort when the recursion depth exceeds a level based on the number of elements being sorted...
(also known as introspective sort).