James Aspnes is a professor in Computer Science

Computer science

Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...

 at Yale University

Yale University

Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...

. He earned his Ph.D.

Ph.D.

A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...

 in computer science from Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University

Carnegie Mellon University is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States....

 in 1992. His main research interest is distributed algorithms.

In 1989, he wrote and operated TinyMUD

TinyMUD

TinyMUD is the name of a MUD server codebase, and the first MUD running that codebase. The MUD itself has subsequently come to be known as "TinyMUD Classic" or simply "Classic", or occasionally "DaisyMUD"...

, one of the first "social" MUD

MUD

A MUD , pronounced , is a multiplayer real-time virtual world, with the term usually referring to text-based instances of these. MUDs combine elements of role-playing games, hack and slash, player versus player, interactive fiction, and online chat...

s that allowed players to build a shared virtual world.

He is the son of David E. Aspnes

David E. Aspnes

David Erik Aspnes is a Distinguished University Professor and member of the Department of Physics at North Carolina State University. Formal education includes BS and MS degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and a Ph.D...

, Distinguished University Professor at North Carolina State University

North Carolina State University

North Carolina State University at Raleigh is a public, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Commonly known as NC State, the university is part of the University of North Carolina system and is a land, sea, and space grant institution...

.

Awards

• The Dylan Hixon '88 Prize for Teaching Excellence in the Natural Sciences. Awarded by Yale College, 2000.
• IBM Graduate Fellowship, 1991–1992.
• NSF Graduate Fellowship, 1987–1990.
• Phi Beta Kappa, 1987.

External links

• James Aspnes's Home Page at Yale