Architects of the Information Society

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Laboratory for Computer Science (LCS) has been responsible for some of the most significant technological achievements of the past few decades. Much of the hardware and software driving the information revolution has been, and continues to be, created at LCS. Anyone who sends and receives email, communicates with colleagues through a LAN, surfs the Web, or makes decisions using a spreadsheet is benefiting from the creativity of LCS members.LCS is an interdepartmental laboratory that brings together faculty, researchers, and students in a broad program of study, research, and experimentation. Their principal goal is to pursue innovations in information technology that will improve people's lives. LCS members have been instrumental in the development of ARPAnet, the Internet, the Web, Ethernet, time-shared computers, UNIX, RSA encryption, the X Windows system, NuBus, and many other technologies.This book, published in celebration of LCS's thirty-fifth anniversary, chronicles its history, achievements, and continued importance to computer science. The essays are complemented by historical photographs.