John Backus
1924 – 2007

John Backus

American computer scientist (1924–2007)

mathematiciancomputer scientist
Born
1924-12-03, Philadelphia
Died
2007-03-17
Birthplace state
Pennsylvania

Biography

John Backus was a mathematician and computer scientist born in Philadelphia in 1924. He led the team that invented and implemented FORTRAN, the first widely used high-level programming language. Backus invented the Backus–Naur form, a notation used to define syntaxes of formal languages, and contributed to the design of ALGOL. He researched the function-level programming paradigm and presented his findings in his 1977 Turing Award lecture titled "Can Programming Be Liberated from the von Neumann Style?"

Occupation

John Backus is recorded as a mathematician and a computer scientist, born in Pennsylvania (1924–2007).

Connections to Pennsylvania

John Backus was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1924. Explore other notable figures from Pennsylvania, historic sites connected to this era, and the full colonial and statehood history of the state using the links below.

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Frequently asked about John Backus

Who was John Backus?
John Backus was American computer scientist (1924–2007), born in Pennsylvania (1924 – 2007).
When and where was John Backus born?
John Backus was born on 1924-12-03 in Philadelphia.
When did John Backus die?
John died on 2007-03-17.
What was John Backus known for?
John Backus is recorded as a mathematician and a computer scientist.
Source

Biographical content adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Source: Wikipedia.

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