Radia Perlman, Mother of the Internet

Have you ever considered how information travels over the Internet?

Think of the Internet as a map with streets and roads and pathways going from point A to point B and beyond. Imagine you are in a car within a search engine. You type in keywords for the information you are seeking. Once you hit the Enter key or "Go" button, your car starts and you begin driving along those roadways and streets seeking the information you desire.

Once the search results pop up, give a small token of thanks to Radia Perlman.

Back in the seventies when the Internet was just a faraway glimmer on the horizon, women didn't know much about computers, did they? At least, that's what computer industry leaders thought as they sought for a solution to those computer routing problems.

Then along came Radia Perlman. She had the solution those computer gurus were searching for, but no one was listening. Because she was a woman.

But Perlman believed in herself and in her solution. She didn't stop talking about it until someone listened. Perlman developed a spanning-tree algorithm. This algorithm is the very software which directs the information traffic on the Internet.

As Greg Papadopoulos, Chief Technology Officer for Sun Microsystems put it, "What Radia did was to put the basic traffic rules into place so it was possible to drive from one point to another without hopelessly getting lost or driving in circles."[1]

The spanning-tree algorithm within the Internet is something users don't see or are even aware they are using. It doesn't deliver data, but keeps the network humming smoothly so the Internet can deliver data.

For this contribution, Perlman has been dubbed the "Mother of the Internet."[1]

Growing up in New Jersey, Perlman's parents both had engineering degrees. Although she was fascinated with computers, she was taught to do little more than turn them on and off.

Once in school, Perlman discovered a passion for math, science and problem-solving. She enrolled in a computer programming class at MIT and passed.

Not long after she was hired at an MIT lab to teach programming to children. She redesigned the program to include graphics which would make learning computer skills more fun for children.

After getting her Master's degree in Mathematics, Perlman went to work for Bolt, Beranek, Newman (BBN) a government contractor that designed software for network equipment. She went from BBN to Digital Equipment a few years after.

At Digital, Perlman really made an impression. The company had been working on getting computers to exchange information for some time. Perlman was given the assignment to work on the issue and presented the solution the very next day.

"Engineering is about finding the sweet spot between what's solvable and what isn't," Perlman has said.[1]

Perlman left Digital to work for Novell where she continued working on information exchange and security systems. She has been with Sun Microsystems since 1997.

Along the way, Perlman acquired her Ph.D. in computer science from MIT in 1988. Her thesis "Routing with Byzantine Robustness" is standard reading for computer programming students at the University of Washington. [2][3]

Everything Perlman has accomplished has been the result of her love for solving puzzles. Her name is on over 80 patents in the field of network systems technology, 50 of those patents are through Sun Microsystems. And, even though those patents belong to the companies she has worked for, Perlman loved the opportunity to solve the puzzles presented to her.

Perlman loves the continued learning she receives by working in her field. But she also enjoys passing along her knowledge to others. She has written books and technical articles as well as served as a professor at Harvard University, MIT and the University of Washington.

"Every time you explain it and every time people ask a question, you see it with fresh eyes and you tend to understand it more deeply," Perlman said.[1]

Perlman was named one of the twenty most influential people in information technology by Data Communications Magazine. [2]

For her contribution to computer technology, Radia Perlman was awarded the Women of Vision Award for Innovation from the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology.

Perlman continues her work at Sun Microsystems, learning more about the internet and security systems and sharing her knowledge and patents with others.

Sources:

[1] MIT Admissions
[2] Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology
[3] Network World