Cynthia Solomon
Cynthia Solomon is a pioneer in the fields of artificial intelligence, computer science and educational computing. While at Bolt, Beranek and Newman, she created the first programming language for children, Logo, with Wally Feurzeig and Seymour Papert. She was Vice President of R&D for Logo Computer Systems, Inc. when Apple Logo was developed and was the Director of the Atari Cambridge Research Laboratory.[1]
After receiving her Bachelor's degree in history at Radcliffe College in the early 1960's,[2] Solomon worked for several years as a researcher with Marvin Minsky and Seymour Papert at MIT and subsequently at Bolt, Beranek and Newman. Subsequently, she studied at Boston University where she received her Master's degree in computer science in 1976. She received her PhD in education at Harvard University in 1985.[3]
Solomon taught at Milton Academy for seven years. After that, she was the Technology Integration Coordinator at Monsignor Haddad Middle School in Needham, MA. More recently, Solomon directed the creation of educational materials for the One Laptop per Child Foundation.
Solomon has maintained a long relationship with the MIT Media Lab and the One Laptop Per Child Foundation in addition to her teaching, consulting and scholarship. Her doctoral research at Harvard led to the publication of the critical book, Computer Environments for Children: A Reflection on Theories of Learning and Education. Solomon is also the co-author of Designing Multimedia Environments for Children, with Allison Druin.
In 2016, Solomon was awarded the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT) Pioneer Award.[3]
Writings
- Twenty Things to Do with a Computer (1971). Papert, Seymour, and Solomon, Cynthia. http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/5836
- LogoWorks: Challenging Programs in Logo (1986). Solomon, Cynthia, Minsky, Margaret, and Harvey, Brian
References
- ^ "Constructing Modern Knowledge". Retrieved 20 November 2012.
- ^ "As the Maker Movement Turns 45, Gary Stager Pays Tribute to M.I.T. Computing Pioneer Cynthia Solomon". Retrieved 7 July 2017.
- ^ a b "Cynthia Solomon". National Center for Women & Information Technology. Retrieved 7 February 2018.
- Living people
- American computer scientists
- Women computer scientists
- Computer science educators
- Atari people
- Programming language designers
- Artificial intelligence researchers
- Radcliffe College alumni
- Boston University alumni
- Apple Inc. employees
- Harvard Graduate School of Education alumni
- MIT Media Lab people