{{Short description|American computer scientist}} {{Infobox scientist | image = 27. Dr. Edward A. Feigenbaum 1994-1997.jpg | caption = Official portrait, 1994 | name = Ed Feigenbaum | birth_name = Edward Albert Feigenbaum | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1936|1|20|mf=y}} | birth_place = [[Weehawken, New Jersey]] | death_date = | death_place = | field = [[Computer science]] <br> [[Artificial intelligence]] | work_institution = [[Stanford University]] <br> [[United States Air Force]] | education = [[Carnegie Mellon University]] ([[Bachelor of Science|BS]], [[Master of Science|MS]], [[Doctor of Philosophy|PhD]]) | doctoral_advisor = [[Herbert A. Simon]] | website = {{URL|http://ksl-web.stanford.edu/people/eaf}} | doctoral_students = {{Plainlist|[[Ramanathan V. Guha]] * [[Alon Halevy]]<ref name=mathgene/> * [[Peter Karp (scientist)|Peter Karp]]<ref name=karphd>{{cite thesis|url=http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/ADA219003|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170609122417/http://www.dtic.mil/docs/citations/ADA219003|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 9, 2017|degree=PhD|publisher=Stanford University|website=dtic.mil|year=1988|oclc=20463112|first=Peter Dornin|last=Karp|doi=10.1609/aimag.v11i4.859|title=Hypothesis Formation and Qualitative Reasoning in Molecular Biology}}</ref> * [[Niklaus Wirth]]<ref name=mathgene/>}} | known_for = [[Expert system]]s <br> [[EPAM]] <br> [[Dendral|DENDRAL project]] <br> [[Feigenbaum test]] | prizes = [[Turing Award]] (1994)<br> [[Computer Pioneer Award]]<br>[[AAAI Fellow]] (1990)<ref>''[https://www.aaai.org/Awards/fellows-list.php Elected AAAI Fellows]''</ref><br>[[ACM Fellow]] (2007) | footnotes = }}
'''Edward Albert Feigenbaum''' (born January 20, 1936) is an American [[computer scientist]] working in the field of [[artificial intelligence]], and with [[Raj Reddy]] he won the 1994 [[Association for Computing Machinery|ACM]] [[Turing Award]].<ref>David Alan Grier. (Oct.-Dec. 2013). "Edward Feigenbaum [interview]." ''[[Annals of the History of Computing]]''. p. 74-81.</ref> He is often called the "father of [[expert system]]s".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.computerhistory.org/fellowawards/hall/bios/Edward,Feigenbaum/ |title=Edward Feigenbaum 2012 Fellow |access-date=2012-01-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130509235811/http://www.computerhistory.org/fellowawards/hall/bios/Edward,Feigenbaum/ |archive-date=2013-05-09 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Feigenbaum|first1=Edward A. |last2=McCorduck|first2=Pamela|year=1983|title=The Fifth Generation: Artificial Intelligence and Japan's Computer Challenge to the World|url=https://archive.org/details/fifthgeneration00feig|url-access=registration|publisher=Addison Wesley Publishing Company|isbn=9780201115192 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.kurzweilai.net/the-age-of-intelligent-machines-knowledge-processing-from-file-servers-to-knowledge-servers |title=The Age of Intelligent Machines: Knowledge Processing--From File Servers to Knowledge Servers by Edward Feigenbaum |access-date=2013-05-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160610052220/http://www.kurzweilai.net/the-age-of-intelligent-machines-knowledge-processing-from-file-servers-to-knowledge-servers |archive-date=2016-06-10 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Feigenbaum|first=Edward A.|year=2003|title=Some challenges and grand challenges for computational intelligence|journal=[[Journal of the ACM]]|volume=50|issue=1|pages=32–40|doi=10.1145/602382.602400|s2cid=15379263}}</ref>
==Education and early life== Feigenbaum was born in [[Weehawken, New Jersey]] in 1936 to a culturally [[Jewish]] family, and moved to nearby [[North Bergen, New Jersey|North Bergen]], where he lived until the age of 16, when he left to start college.<ref name=a-full-interview>{{cite news|last=Len Shustek|title=An Interview with Ed Feigenbaum|url=http://cacm.acm.org/magazines/2010/6/92472-an-interview-with-ed-feigenbaum/fulltext|access-date=14 October 2013|newspaper=[[Communications of the ACM]]}}</ref><ref name=Knuth2007>[[Donald Knuth|Knuth, Don]]. [http://archive.computerhistory.org/resources/access/text/2012/04/102658162-05-01-acc.pdf "Oral History of Edward Feigenbaum"], [[Computer History Museum]], 2007. Accessed October 23, 2015. "I was born in Weehawken, New Jersey, which is a town on the Palisades opposite New York. In fact, it’s the place where the Lincoln Tunnel dives under the water and comes up in New York. Then my parents moved up the Palisades four miles to a town called North Bergen, and there I lived until I was 16 and went off to Carnegie Tech."</ref> His hometown did not have a secondary school of its own, and so he chose [[Weehawken High School]] for its college preparatory program.<ref name=Knuth2007/><ref>[[Joshua Lederberg|Lederberg, Joshua]]. [https://web.archive.org/web/20110611153218/http://profiles.nlm.nih.gov/ps/access/BBALYP.pdf "How DENDRAL was conceived and born"], [[United States National Library of Medicine]], November 5, 1987. Accessed October 23, 2015. "I became an expert on its use. I even remember dragging it with me miles on the bus to Weehawken High School, heavy as it was, just to show off my skill with this marvelous technology that no other kid in the high school knew anything about."</ref> He was inducted into his high school's hall of fame in 1996.<ref>Hague, Jim. [http://www.hudsonreporter.com/view/full_story/2362426/article-Academic-awards-aplenty--Weehawken-honors-top-students--inducts-Pasquale-into-Hall-of-Fame "Academic awards aplenty; Weehawken honors top students, inducts Pasquale into Hall of Fame"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180315134029/http://www.hudsonreporter.com/view/full_story/2362426/article-Academic-awards-aplenty--Weehawken-honors-top-students--inducts-Pasquale-into-Hall-of-Fame |date=2018-03-15 }}, ''[[Hudson Reporter]]'', May 13, 2000. Accessed October 23, 2015. "Edward Feigenbaum (Class of '53) in 1996"</ref>
Feigenbaum completed his undergraduate degree (1956), and a [[Doctor of Philosophy|Ph.D.]] (1960),<ref name=mathgene>{{MathGenealogy |id=61956 |title=Edward Albert Feigenbaum}}</ref><ref name=aigene>{{AIGenealogy |id=300 |title=Edward A. Feigenbaum}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title=ProQuest Document ID 301899261 |journal=[[ProQuest Dissertations and Theses]] |id={{ProQuest|301899261}} }}</ref> at Carnegie Institute of Technology (now [[Carnegie Mellon University]]). In his PhD thesis, carried out under the supervision of [[Herbert A. Simon]], he developed [[EPAM]], one of the first computer models of how people learn.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cdn.calisphere.org/data/13030/hc/kt500039hc/files/kt500039hc.pdf |title=Guide to the Edward A. Feigenbaum Papers |publisher=[[Stanford University]] |year=2010 |page=2 |access-date=September 12, 2011}}</ref>
During undergrad years, Feigenbaum took a graduate-level course called "Ideas and Social Change" taught by [[James G. March|James March]]. March introduced him to Herbert Simon. Feigenbaum took a course "Mathematical Models in the Social Sciences" taught by Simon, where Simon announced the [[Logic Theorist]] with "Over the Christmas holidays, Al Newell and I invented a thinking machine." Simon gave Feigenbaum a manual of [[IBM 701]], which he read in one night. Feigenbaum later called it a "born-again experience".<ref>{{Cite journal |last=McCorduck |first=Pamela |date=2022-01-01 |title=The Scientific Life of Edward A. Feigenbaum |journal=IEEE Annals of the History of Computing |volume=44 |issue=1 |pages=123–128 |doi=10.1109/MAHC.2022.3145216 |bibcode=2022IAHC...44a.123M |issn=1058-6180}}</ref>
==Career and research== Feigenbaum completed a [[Fulbright Fellowship|Fulbright fellowship]] at the [[National Physical Laboratory (United Kingdom)]] and in 1960 went to the [[University of California, Berkeley]], to teach in the School of Business Administration. He joined the [[Stanford University]] faculty in 1965 as one of the founders of its computer science department.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://library.stanford.edu/collections/edward-feigenbaum-papers|title=Edward A. Feigenbaum Papers|publisher=[[Stanford University]]|year=2012}}</ref> He was the director of the Stanford Computation Center from 1965 to 1968. He established the [[Knowledge Systems Laboratory]] at Stanford University. Important projects that Feigenbaum was involved in include systems in medicine, as [[ACME (health software)|ACME]], [[MYCIN]], SUMEX, and [[Dendral]]. He also co-founded companies [[IntelliCorp (Software)|IntelliCorp]] and Teknowledge.
[[File:AAAI 2025 - Edward Feigenbaum, Raj Reddy 01 (cropped).jpg|thumb|left|Feigenbaum and [[Raj Reddy]] honored at [[AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence|AAAI]] 2026]]
Teknowledge was founded in July 1981 by 20 computer scientists from Stanford University, MIT, and the Rand Corporation. The company's staff "represent about 1/3 of the world's high-level expertise in the design and development of knowledge systems". Its aim was to allow people without training in knowledge-engineering technology to use it for commercial and industrial applications.<ref>{{Cite journal |date=April 1986 |title=Expert Profiles |journal=IEEE Expert |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages=114–116 |doi=10.1109/MEX.1986.5006509 |issn=0885-9000}}</ref>
In 2000, Feigenbaum became a [[Professor Emeritus#Retired faculty|Professor Emeritus]] of Computer Science at Stanford University. His former doctoral students include [[Peter Karp (scientist)|Peter Karp]],<ref name=karphd/> [[Niklaus Wirth]],<ref name=mathgene/> and [[Alon Halevy]].<ref name=mathgene/>
In January 2026, the [[Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence]] (AAAI) honored Feigenbaum at its 40th annual [[AAAI Conference on Artificial Intelligence|conference]] in [[Singapore]] in celebration of his 90th birthday, recognizing his foundational contributions to the field of expert systems.<ref>{{cite web |last= |first= |title=AAAI-26 Invited Speakers |url=https://aaai.org/conference/aaai/aaai-26/invited-speakers/#Feigenbaum |access-date=2026-01-26}}</ref>
===Honors and awards=== * 1984: Selected as one of the initial fellows of the [[American College of Medical Informatics]] (ACMI) * 1986: Elected a member of the [[National Academy of Engineering]] for pioneering contributions to knowledge engineering and expert systems technology, and for leadership in education and technology of applied artificial intelligence. * 1994: [[Turing Award]] jointly with [[Raj Reddy]] for "pioneering the design and construction of large scale artificial intelligence systems, demonstrating the practical importance and potential commercial impact of artificial intelligence technology". * 1997: U.S. Air Force [[Awards and decorations of the United States Air Force#Civilian awards|Exceptional Civilian Service Award]] * 2007: Inducted as fellow of the [[Association for Computing Machinery]] (ACM)<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://awards.acm.org/award_winners/feigenbaum_4167235|title=Edward A Feigenbaum|website=awards.acm.org|language=en|access-date=2019-08-24}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://entitledopinions.stanford.edu/edward-feigenbaum-artificial-intelligence|title=Edward Feigenbaum on Artificial Intelligence {{!}} Entitled Opinions|website=entitledopinions.stanford.edu|access-date=2019-08-24|archive-date=2022-11-09|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221109184705/https://entitledopinions.stanford.edu/edward-feigenbaum-artificial-intelligence|url-status=dead}}</ref> * 2011: The [[Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence|AAAI]] established the '''Feigenbaum Prize''', awarded biennially for outstanding AI research advances.<ref>{{cite web |title=AAAI Feigenbaum Prize |url=https://aaai.org/about-aaai/aaai-awards/aaai-feigenbaum-prize/ |publisher=Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence |access-date=2026-01-26}}</ref> * 2011: [[IEEE Intelligent Systems]] [http://www.computer.org/cms/Computer.org/ComputingNow/homepage/2011/0811/rW_IS_AIsHallofFame.pdf AI's Hall of Fame] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111216235804/http://www.computer.org/cms/Computer.org/ComputingNow/homepage/2011/0811/rW_IS_AIsHallofFame.pdf |date=2011-12-16 }} for "significant contributions to the field of AI and intelligent systems".<ref>{{Cite journal | last1 = Zeng | first1 = Daniel | doi = 10.1109/MIS.2011.64 | title = AI's Hall of Fame | url = http://www.computer.org/cms/Computer.org/ComputingNow/homepage/2011/0811/rW_IS_AIsHallofFame.pdf | journal = [[IEEE Intelligent Systems]] | publisher = [[IEEE Computer Society]] | volume = 26 | issue = 4 | pages = 5–15 | year = 2011 | bibcode = 2011IISys..26d...5Z | access-date = 2015-01-06 | archive-date = 2011-12-16 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20111216235804/http://www.computer.org/cms/Computer.org/ComputingNow/homepage/2011/0811/rW_IS_AIsHallofFame.pdf | url-status = dead }}</ref> * 2012. Made fellow of the [[Computer History Museum]] "for his pioneering work in artificial intelligence and expert systems."<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.computerhistory.org/fellowawards/hall/bios/Edward,Feigenbaum/ | title = Edward Feigenbaum | publisher = Computer History Museum | access-date = 2013-05-23 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130509235811/http://www.computerhistory.org/fellowawards/hall/bios/Edward,Feigenbaum/ | archive-date = 2013-05-09 | url-status = dead }}</ref> * 2013. [[IEEE Computer Society]] [[Computer Pioneer Award]] for "pioneering work in Artificial Intelligence, including development of the basic principles and methods of knowledge-based systems and their practical applications".
==Works== * {{cite book |editor1-last=Feigenbaum |editor1-first=Edward |editor2-last=Feldman |editor2-first=Julian |title=Computers and thought : a collection of articles |date=1963 |publisher=McGraw-Hill |location=New York |edition=1 |oclc=593742426 }}<ref>{{cite web |title=This week in The History of AI at AIWS.net – Edward Feigenbaum and Julian Feldman published "Computers and Thought" |url=https://aiws.net/the-history-of-ai/this-week-in-the-history-of-ai-at-aiws-net-edward-feigenbaum-and-julian-feldman-published-computers-and-thought-2/ |website=AIWS.net |access-date=5 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Feigenbaum & Feldman Issue "Computers and Thought," the First Anthology on Artificial Intelligence |url=https://www.historyofinformation.com/detail.php?entryid=4329 |website=History of Information |access-date=5 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Feigenbaum |first1=Edward A. |last2=Feldman |first2=Julian |title=Computers and Thought |url=https://dl.acm.org/doi/book/10.5555/601134 |publisher=McGraw-Hill, Inc. |access-date=5 May 2022 |date=1963}} {{isbn|9780070203709 }}.</ref> * {{cite book |last1=Barr |first1=Avron |last2=Feigenbaum |first2=Edward A. |title=The Handbook of artificial intelligence, volume 1 |date=1981 |publisher=HeurisTech Press; William Kaufmann |location=Stanford, CA; Los Altos, CA |isbn=978-0-86576-004-2 |url=https://archive.org/details/handbookofartific01barr/}} * {{cite book |last1=Barr |first1=Avron |last2=Feigenbaum |first2=Edward A. |title=The Handbook of artificial intelligence, volume 2 |date=1982 |publisher=HeurisTech Press; William Kaufmann |location=Stanford, CA; Los Altos, CA |isbn=978-0-86576-006-6 |url=https://archive.org/details/handbookofartific02barr/}} * {{cite book |last1=Cohen |first1=Paul R. |last2=Feigenbaum |first2=Edward A. |title=The Handbook of artificial intelligence, volume 3 |date=1982 |publisher=HeurisTech Press; William Kaufmann |location=Stanford, CA; Los Altos, CA |isbn=978-0-86576-007-3 |url=https://archive.org/details/handbookofartific03cohe}} * {{cite book |last1=Barr |first1=Avron |last2=Cohen |first2=Paul R. |last3=Feigenbaum |first3=Edward A. (Edward Albert) |title=Handbook of artificial intelligence, volume 4 |date=1989 |publisher=Addison Wesley |location=Reading, MA |isbn=978-0-201-51731-6 |url=https://archive.org/details/handbookofartific04barr}} *{{Cite book |last1=Feigenbaum |first1=Edward A. |title=The fifth generation: artificial intelligence and Japan's computer challenge to the world |last2=McCorduck |first2=Pamela |date=1983 |publisher=Addison-Wesley |isbn=978-0-201-11519-2 |location=Reading, Mass}} * {{Cite book |last1=Feigenbaum |first1=Edward A. |title=The rise of the expert company: how visionary companies are using artificial intelligence to achieve higher productivity and profits |last2=McCorduck |first2=Pamela |last3=Nii |first3=H. P. |date=1988 |publisher=Macmillan London |isbn=978-0-333-49659-6 |location=London}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{Turing award}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Feigenbaum, Edward}} [[Category:1936 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:American artificial intelligence researchers]] [[Category:Turing Award laureates]] [[Category:20th-century American Jews]] [[Category:Fellows of the Association for Computing Machinery]] [[Category:Carnegie Mellon University alumni]] [[Category:Fellows of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence]] [[Category:Chief Scientists of the United States Air Force]] [[Category:Stanford University School of Engineering faculty]] [[Category:Members of the United States National Academy of Engineering]] [[Category:People from North Bergen, New Jersey]] [[Category:People from Weehawken, New Jersey]] [[Category:Presidents of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence]] [[Category:Haas School of Business faculty]] [[Category:Weehawken High School alumni]] [[Category:21st-century American Jews]]