Computer Pioneer Uncapher Dies

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

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Keith had a major impact on my life and I will remember him. I will send out
a piece latter today with more.

Dave


October 12, 2002

Computer Pioneer Uncapher Dies
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Filed at 5:23 a.m. ET



LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Keith Uncapher, a computer pioneer at the University of
Southern California who was a key player in the development of the Internet,
died of a heart attack, the university announced. He was 80.

Uncapher, who founded the Information Sciences Institute at USC's school of
engineering in 1972, died Thursday.

Under his tenure as executive director, ISI researchers worked on the
development of the Internet's system of domain names that includes ``.com''
``.net,'' ``.org'' and other addresses.

``He and his creations were at the center of the information technology
revolution of the 20th century,'' said Herbert Schorr, Uncapher's successor
at ISI.

Before forming ISI with a staff of three, Uncapher worked for RAND
Corporation in Santa Monica. He was director of RAND's computer science
division, where he led a project on ``packet switching'' technology, which
breaks down digital messages into parts and sends them over a network to be
reassembled at their destination.

``Keith Uncapher was a brilliant pioneer whose work advanced not only USC
and its school of engineering, but the whole field of computers,'' said USC
President Steven B. Sample.

Born in Denver on April 1, 1922, Uncapher graduated with an electrical
engineering degree from California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo,
and served for four years in the U.S. Navy during World War II.

He was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 1998.

In 1986, Uncapher co-founded the not-for-profit Corporation for National
Research Initiatives in Reston, Va., where he was senior vice president.

Uncapher lived in Playa del Ray. He is survived by his wife, Doris, and two
sons.

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