Thomas Kurtz was an American mathematician who, with John Kemeny, invented the BASIC programming language at Dartmouth College in 1964, alongside the Dartmouth Time-Sharing System. From 1963 to 1964, Kurtz and Kemeny led a team of students in developing both systems; the first BASIC program ran on May 1, 1964, at 4 a.m. Kurtz directed Dartmouth's Kiewit Computation Center from 1966 to 1975 and co-founded True BASIC, Inc. in 1983 to continue developing the language commercially. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/
Facts
FAQs
What part did students play in creating BASIC and time-sharing at Dartmouth?
Undergraduates did much of the work. Dartmouth credits Kurtz with enlisting them to carry out his and Kemeny's vision.
Students were central to the project. Dartmouth's own account says Thomas Kurtz enlisted undergraduates to carry out his and John Kemeny's vision. Elizabeth F. Smith, dean of the faculty of arts and sciences, says this work proved that students, not specialized engineers, could drive this new movement to make computers accessible to the general public. According to Dartmouth legend, it was at 4 a.m. on May 1, 1964, in the basement of College Hall, that student programmers typed run on neighboring terminals and got back correct answers to their simple programs, marking the launch of both time-sharing and BASIC. By that fall, hundreds of students were using BASIC on 20 terminals around campus.
Connections
In Field
Source Wikipedia: Thomas E. Kurtz
Invented
Co-invented with John Kemeny.
Source Wikipedia: Thomas E. Kurtz
Invented By
Source Programming Language Database (PLDB): Dartmouth BASIC
In the Other Atlases
Nationality
Also in Geography Atlas: the nationality of this subject.
Source Wikipedia: Thomas E. KurtzLead paragraph of the cited Wikipedia articletier 2Quote, Lead paragraph of the cited Wikipedia article
Thomas Eugene Kurtz (February 22, 1928 – November 12, 2024) was an American computer scientist and educator.
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Thomas E. Kurtz
Wikimedia FoundationCareer section
In 1956, he was recruited to Dartmouth College by John G. Kemeny and joined the Mathematics Department, where he taught statistics and numerical analysis. From 1963 to 1964, Kurtz and Kemeny, working with a team of students, led the development of the Dartmouth Time-Sharing System (DTSS) and the BASIC programming language.
Introduction
Thomas Eugene Kurtz (February 22, 1928 - November 12, 2024) was an American computer scientist and educator. A Dartmouth professor of mathematics, he and colleague John G. Kemeny are best known for co-developing the BASIC programming language and the Dartmouth Time-Sharing System in 1963 and 1964.
Infobox: birth_date
February 22, 1928
Infobox: death_date
November 12, 2024
Intro, parenthetical
February 22, 1928
Intro, death date
November 12, 2024
Intro, first sentence
American computer scientist and educator
- In Field: Programming Language Theory, Lead paragraph
View the Source 2. Dartmouth: Remembering Computing Legend Thomas Kurtz
Dartmouth College, Faculty of Arts and SciencesDate of deathQuote, Date of death
Thomas Kurtz, a professor emeritus of computer science and mathematics who played a key role in the computing revolution, died on Nov. 12 at the Jack Byrne Center for Palliative and Hospice Care in Lebanon, N.H. He was 96.
3. Thomas Kurtz (Wikidata)
Wikidata P166: ACM Fellow
Wikidata P166 (award received): ACM Fellow.
Wikidata P166: Computer Pioneer Award
Wikidata P166 (award received): Computer Pioneer Award.
View the SourceProgramming Language Database (PLDB): Dartmouth BASIC
Invented By: Dartmouth BASIC, PLDB page opening sentenceQuote, Invented By: Dartmouth BASIC, PLDB page opening sentence
Dartmouth BASIC is a programming language created in 1964 by John G. Kemeny and Thomas E. Kurtz.
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