Ronald Baecker
Ronald Baecker (born October 7, 1942) is an Emeritus Professor of Computer Science and Bell Chair in Human-Computer Interaction at the University of Toronto (UofT),[1] and Adjunct Professor of Computer Science at Columbia University.[2] He was the co-founder of the Dynamic Graphics Project (DGP),[3] and the founder of the Knowledge Media Design Institute (KMDI)[4] and the Technologies for Aging Gracefully Lab (TAGlab) at UofT.[5][6] He was the founder of Canada's research network on collaboration technologies (NECTAR),[7] a founding researcher of AGE-WELL,[8] Canada's Technology and Agine research network, the founder of Springer Nature's Synthesis Lectures on Technology and Health,[9] and the founder of computers-society.org.[10] He also started five software companies between 1976 and 2015.[11] He is currently an ACM Distinguished Speaker.[11]
Ronald Baecker | |
---|---|
Born | October 7, 1942 |
Citizenship | U.S., Canada |
Alma mater | MIT |
Scientific career | |
Fields | Computer science |
Institutions | University of Toronto and Columbia University |
He is the author of Ethical Tech Startup Guide (Springer Nature, 2023),[12] author of Digital Dreams Have Become Nightmares: What We Must Do (2021),[13] co-author of The COVID-19 Solutions Guide (2020),[14] and author of Computers and Society: Modern Perspectives (Oxford University Press, 2019).[15] His other books are Readings in Human Computer Interaction: Toward the Year 2000 (Morgan Kaufmann, 1995),[16] Readings in Groupware and Computer Supported Cooperative Work: Software to Facilitate Human-Human Collaboration (Elsevier, 1993),[17] Human Factors and Typography for More Readable Programs (Addison-Wesley, 1990)[18] and Readings in Human Computer Interaction: A Multidisciplinary Approach (Elsevier, 1987).[19]
Education
Baecker received a B.Sc. in Physics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in 1963, an M.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from MIT in 1964, and a Ph.D. in Computer Science from MIT in 1969.
Summary of research interests
Baecker is an expert in human-computer interaction (HCI), user interface (UI) design, software visualization, multimedia, computer-supported cooperative work and learning, entrepreneurship in the software industry, and the design of technologies for aging gracefully.[20]
Honors and awards
- ACM Distinguished Speaker, 1 March 2022 - 28 February 2025.[21]
- Social Impact Award from the ACM Special Interest Group on Computers and Human Interaction (SIGCHI), 2020.[22]
- Lifetime Achievement Award from the Canadian Association of Computer Science/Association d’informatique Canadienne, the national organization of Canadian Computer Science Departments/Schools/Faculties, May 2015.[23]
- Given the 3rd Canadian Digital Media Pioneer Award, GRAND Network of Centres of Excellence, May 2013.[24]
- Elected as an ACM Fellow, November 2011.[25]
- Second-place recipient, University of Toronto Inventor of the Year Award, Information and Computer Technology, January 2011.[26]
- Awarded the 2007 Leadership Award of Merit from the Ontario Research and Innovation Optical Network (ORION) in June 2007.[27]
- Awarded the Canadian Human Computer Communications Society Achievement Award in May 2005.[28]
- Elected to the ACM SIGCHI CHI Academy in February 2005.[29]
- Named one of the 60 Pioneers of Computer Graphics by ACM SIGGRAPH in 1998. [30]
References
- "Faculty Directory". Department of Computer Science, University of Toronto. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
- "Courses, Department of Computer Science, Columbia University". www.cs.columbia.edu. Retrieved 2023-05-15.
- "About". Dynamic Graphics Project. 2013-08-28. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
- "About – KMDI". KMDI. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
- Ledger, Brent (8 December 2011). "Technologies for Aging Gracefully". University of Toronto Magazine. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
- "TAGlab | Technologies for Aging Gracefully". Retrieved 2023-05-15.
- "NECTAR to quench thirst for collaborative solutions | IT Business". www.itbusiness.ca. 2004-10-12. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
- "Dr. Ronald Baecker". AGE-WELL: Canada's Technology and Aging Network.
- "Synthesis Lectures on Technology and Health". Springer. Retrieved 2023-05-22.
- "Computers and Society". Computers and Society. 2021-05-04. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
- "Ronald Michael Baecker". speakers.acm.org. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
- Ethical Tech Startup Guide. Synthesis Lectures on Professionalism and Career Advancement for Scientists and Engineers. Springer. 2023. doi:10.1007/978-3-031-18780-3. ISBN 978-3-031-18779-7. S2CID 258177860.
- "Digital Dreams Have Become Nightmares: What We Must Do (2021)". Ronald Baecker. 2021-08-18. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
- "The COVID-19 Solutions Guide (second edition)". Ronald Baecker. 2022-05-02. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
- "Computers and Society: Modern Perspectives". Oxford Academic. Retrieved 2023-05-08.
- "Readings in Human-Computer Interaction Toward the Year 2000". Elsevier.
- "Readings in Groupware and Computer-Supported Cooperative Work: Assisting Human-Human Collaboration". Elsevier.
- Baecker, Ronald M. (1990). Human factors and typography for more readable programs. Addison-Wesley. ISBN 9780201107456.
- Baecker, Ronald M.; Buxton, W. (1987-01-01). "Readings in human-computer interaction: A multidisciplinary approach". Morgan Kaufmann Publishers. OSTI 5039704.
- Ron Baecker. "Ph.D., Computer Science, Department of Electrical Engineering, M.I.T 1969". University of Toronto, Toronto.
- Baecker, Ronald M. "A Call to Action". cacm.acm.org. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
- "Professor Emeritus Ron Baecker honoured with 2020 SIGCHI Social Impact Award". Department of Computer Science, University of Toronto. April 2020. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
- "Lifetime Achievement Award: Ronald M. Baecker | CACS/AIC - Canadian Association of Computer Science". cacsaic.org. Retrieved 2015-11-24.
- "Ron Baecker | GRAND NCE". grand-nce.ca. Archived from the original on 2015-11-25. Retrieved 2015-11-24.
- "News". web.cs.toronto.edu. Retrieved 2015-11-24.
- "Research and Innovation » U of T Inventors of the Year". www.research.utoronto.ca. Archived from the original on 2015-11-25. Retrieved 2015-11-24.
- "2007 ORION Awards - Celebrating Ontario's contribution to research, teaching and learning -- June 04,2007". www.newswire.ca. Retrieved 2015-11-24.
- "GI 2005 - Graphics Interface". Graphics Interface. Retrieved 2015-11-24.
- "2005 SIGCHI Awards". www.sigchi.org. Retrieved 2022-01-07.
- SIGGRAPH. Retrieved 2023-07-17.