Jim Blinn
Encyclopedia
James F. Blinn is a computer scientist who first became widely known for his work as a computer graphics expert at NASA
's Jet Propulsion Laboratory
(JPL), particularly his work on the pre-encounter animations for the Voyager
project, his work on the Carl Sagan
Cosmos
documentary series and the research of the Blinn–Phong shading model
.
. In 1978 he received a Ph.D. in computer science
from the College of Engineering
at the University of Utah
.
Blinn devised new methods to represent how objects and light interact in a three dimensional virtual world, like environment mapping and bump mapping
. He is well known for creating animation for three television series: Carl Sagan
's Cosmos: A Personal Voyage
; Project MATHEMATICS!
; and the pioneering instructional graphics in The Mechanical Universe
. His simulations of the Voyager
spacecraft visiting Jupiter
and Saturn
have been seen widely. He is now a graphics fellow at Microsoft Research
. Blinn also worked for a time a the New York Institute of Technology
.
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
's Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Jet Propulsion Laboratory is a federally funded research and development center and NASA field center located in the San Gabriel Valley area of Los Angeles County, California, United States. The facility is headquartered in the city of Pasadena on the border of La Cañada Flintridge and Pasadena...
(JPL), particularly his work on the pre-encounter animations for the Voyager
Voyager program
The Voyager program is a U.S program that launched two unmanned space missions, scientific probes Voyager 1 and Voyager 2. They were launched in 1977 to take advantage of a favorable planetary alignment of the late 1970s...
project, his work on the Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan
Carl Edward Sagan was an American astronomer, astrophysicist, cosmologist, author, science popularizer and science communicator in astronomy and natural sciences. He published more than 600 scientific papers and articles and was author, co-author or editor of more than 20 books...
Cosmos
Cosmos: A Personal Voyage
Cosmos: A Personal Voyage is a thirteen-part television series written by Carl Sagan, Ann Druyan, and Steven Soter, with Sagan as presenter. It was executive-produced by Adrian Malone, produced by David Kennard, Geoffrey Haines-Stiles and Gregory Andorfer, and directed by the producers, David...
documentary series and the research of the Blinn–Phong shading model
Blinn–Phong shading model
The Blinn–Phong shading model is a modification to the Phong reflection model developed by Jim Blinn....
.
Biography
In 1970, he received his bachelor's degree in physics and communications science, and later a master's degree in engineering from the University of MichiganUniversity of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
. In 1978 he received a Ph.D. 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...
from the College of Engineering
University of Utah College of Engineering
The University of Utah College of Engineering is an academic college of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah. The college offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in engineering and computer science.-History:...
at the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
.
Blinn devised new methods to represent how objects and light interact in a three dimensional virtual world, like environment mapping and bump mapping
Bump mapping
Bump mapping is a technique in computer graphics for simulating bumps and wrinkles on the surface of an object. This is achieved by perturbing the surface normals of the object and using the perturbed normal during lighting calculations. The result is an apparently bumpy surface rather than a...
. He is well known for creating animation for three television series: Carl Sagan
Carl Sagan
Carl Edward Sagan was an American astronomer, astrophysicist, cosmologist, author, science popularizer and science communicator in astronomy and natural sciences. He published more than 600 scientific papers and articles and was author, co-author or editor of more than 20 books...
's Cosmos: A Personal Voyage
Cosmos: A Personal Voyage
Cosmos: A Personal Voyage is a thirteen-part television series written by Carl Sagan, Ann Druyan, and Steven Soter, with Sagan as presenter. It was executive-produced by Adrian Malone, produced by David Kennard, Geoffrey Haines-Stiles and Gregory Andorfer, and directed by the producers, David...
; Project MATHEMATICS!
Project MATHEMATICS!
Project Mathematics! , is a series of educational video modules and accompanying workbooks for teachers, developed to help teach the principles of mathematics to high school students.-Overview:...
; and the pioneering instructional graphics in The Mechanical Universe
The Mechanical Universe
The Mechanical Universe... And Beyond, is a 52-part telecourse filmed at the California Institute of Technology, and produced by Caltech and INTELECOM Intelligent Telecommunications . The series introduces university level physics, covering topics from Copernicus to quantum mechanics...
. His simulations of the Voyager
Voyager program
The Voyager program is a U.S program that launched two unmanned space missions, scientific probes Voyager 1 and Voyager 2. They were launched in 1977 to take advantage of a favorable planetary alignment of the late 1970s...
spacecraft visiting Jupiter
Jupiter
Jupiter is the fifth planet from the Sun and the largest planet within the Solar System. It is a gas giant with mass one-thousandth that of the Sun but is two and a half times the mass of all the other planets in our Solar System combined. Jupiter is classified as a gas giant along with Saturn,...
and Saturn
Saturn
Saturn is the sixth planet from the Sun and the second largest planet in the Solar System, after Jupiter. Saturn is named after the Roman god Saturn, equated to the Greek Cronus , the Babylonian Ninurta and the Hindu Shani. Saturn's astronomical symbol represents the Roman god's sickle.Saturn,...
have been seen widely. He is now a graphics fellow at Microsoft Research
Microsoft Research
Microsoft Research is the research division of Microsoft created in 1991 for developing various computer science ideas and integrating them into Microsoft products. It currently employs Turing Award winners C.A.R. Hoare, Butler Lampson, and Charles P...
. Blinn also worked for a time a the New York Institute of Technology
New York Institute of Technology
New York Institute of Technology is a private, non-sectarian, co-educational research university in New York City. NYIT has five schools and two colleges, all with a strong emphasis on technology and applied scientific research...
.
Publications
- Blinn, James F.: Jim Blinn's Corner: Dirty Pixels, Morgan Kaufmann Publishers, Inc., ISBN 1-55860-455-3
- Blinn, James F.: Jim Blinn's Corner: A Trip Down The Graphics Pipeline, Morgan Kaufmann Publishers, Inc., ISBN 1-55860-387-5
- Blinn, James F.: Jim Blinn's Corner: Notation, Notation, Notation, Morgan Kaufmann Publishers, Inc., ISBN 1-55860-860-5
- Blinn, James F.: Simulation of Wrinkled Surfaces, Computer Graphics, Vol. 12 (3), pp. 286–292 SIGGRAPH-ACM (August 1978)
- Blinn, James F.: Texture and Reflection In Computer Generated Images, CACM, 19(10), October 1976, pp 542–547.
- Blinn, James F.: Models of Light Reflection for Computer Synthesized Pictures, SIGGRAPH 77, pp 192–198.
- Blinn, James F.: A Generalization of Algebraic Surface Drawing, ACM Transactions on GraphicsACM Transactions on GraphicsACM Transactions on Graphics is a peer-reviewed scientific journal that aims to disseminate the latest findings of note in the field of computer graphics. It has been published since 1982 by the Association for Computing Machinery...
, 1(3), July 1982, pp 235–256. - Blinn, James F.: Light Reflection Functions for the Simulation of Clouds and Dusty Surfaces, SIGGRAPH 82, pp 21–29.
Awards
- 1983, NASA Exceptional Service medal for Voyager Fly-by animation.
- 1983, SIGGRAPH Computer Graphics Achievement Award.
- 1989, IEEE Outstanding Contribution Award for Jim Blinn's corner.
- 1991, MacArthur Fellowship in recognition of and to allow continuation of his work in educational animation.
- 1995, Honorary Doctor of Fine Arts degree from the Parsons School of Design for contributions to computer graphics.
- 1999, Steven Anson Coons Award for Outstanding Creative Contributions to Computer Graphics.