John Wozencraft
Encyclopedia
John McReynolds "Jack" Wozencraft (September 30, 1925 – August 31, 2009) was an electrical engineer and information theorist
, professor emeritus
at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
. One of the pioneers of coding theory
, Wozencraft developed the sequential decoding
techniques for convolutional code
s that made error-free communication possible with relatively low computing power.
He attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, NY. Following graduation in 1946, he joined the Army Signal Corps Engineering Laboratory.
He received his Sc.D.
at MIT
in 1957. From 1957 to 1976, when he retired, he served on the faculty of MIT's department of Electrical Engineering.
While on a leave of absence from MIT (1972–1974), he served as Dean of Research at the Naval Postgraduate School
in Monterey, California
. Following his retirement from MIT in 1976, he returned to the Naval Postgraduate School as professor of electrical engineering and the founding chairman of a new interdisciplinary command, control, and communications academic group. He was appointed distinguished professor in 1985, and he retired in 1987.
In 1965, with Irwin M. Jacobs
, Wozencraft co-authored Principles of Communication Engineering (ISBN 0881335541), a highly-regarded textbook which is still widely used.
In 2006, Wozencraft was awarded the IEEE Alexander Graham Bell Medal
.
He died on August 31, 2009 in Redmond, Washington
.
Information theory
Information theory is a branch of applied mathematics and electrical engineering involving the quantification of information. Information theory was developed by Claude E. Shannon to find fundamental limits on signal processing operations such as compressing data and on reliably storing and...
, professor emeritus
Emeritus
Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...
at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
. One of the pioneers of coding theory
Coding theory
Coding theory is the study of the properties of codes and their fitness for a specific application. Codes are used for data compression, cryptography, error-correction and more recently also for network coding...
, Wozencraft developed the sequential decoding
Sequential decoding
Sequential decoding is a limited memory technique for decoding tree codes. Sequential decoding is mainly used is as an approximate decoding algorithm for long constraint-length convolutional codes...
techniques for convolutional code
Convolutional code
In telecommunication, a convolutional code is a type of error-correcting code in which* each m-bit information symbol to be encoded is transformed into an n-bit symbol, where m/n is the code rate and...
s that made error-free communication possible with relatively low computing power.
He attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, NY. Following graduation in 1946, he joined the Army Signal Corps Engineering Laboratory.
He received his Sc.D.
Doctor of Science
Doctor of Science , usually abbreviated Sc.D., D.Sc., S.D. or Dr.Sc., is an academic research degree awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. In some countries Doctor of Science is the name used for the standard doctorate in the sciences, elsewhere the Sc.D...
at MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. MIT has five schools and one college, containing a total of 32 academic departments, with a strong emphasis on scientific and technological education and research.Founded in 1861 in...
in 1957. From 1957 to 1976, when he retired, he served on the faculty of MIT's department of Electrical Engineering.
While on a leave of absence from MIT (1972–1974), he served as Dean of Research at the Naval Postgraduate School
Naval Postgraduate School
The Naval Postgraduate School is an accredited research university operated by the United States Navy. Located in Monterey, California, it grants master's degrees, Engineer's degrees and doctoral degrees...
in Monterey, California
Monterey, California
The City of Monterey in Monterey County is located on Monterey Bay along the Pacific coast in Central California. Monterey lies at an elevation of 26 feet above sea level. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 27,810. Monterey is of historical importance because it was the capital of...
. Following his retirement from MIT in 1976, he returned to the Naval Postgraduate School as professor of electrical engineering and the founding chairman of a new interdisciplinary command, control, and communications academic group. He was appointed distinguished professor in 1985, and he retired in 1987.
In 1965, with Irwin M. Jacobs
Irwin M. Jacobs
Irwin Mark Jacobs , is an electrical engineer and the co-founder and former chairman of Qualcomm, and chair of the board of trustees of the Salk Institute. In 2010, Jacobs was listed as number 828 on Forbes's annual list of the World's Top Billionaires.-Education:Jacobs earned his B.S...
, Wozencraft co-authored Principles of Communication Engineering (ISBN 0881335541), a highly-regarded textbook which is still widely used.
In 2006, Wozencraft was awarded the IEEE Alexander Graham Bell Medal
IEEE Alexander Graham Bell Medal
The IEEE Alexander Graham Bell Medal is an award honoring "exceptional contributions to the advancement of communications sciences and engineering" in the field of telecommunications...
.
He died on August 31, 2009 in Redmond, Washington
Redmond, Washington
Redmond is a city in King County, Washington, United States, located east of Seattle. The population was 54,144 at the 2010 census,up from 45,256 in 2000....
.