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1. his role
2. justify recommendation
3. discuss any reservations
Dr. Luckham came to Stanford as a Research Associate in Computer
Science in xxx and then went to UCLA as Associate Professor of Computer
Science. He returned to Stanford as a Research Associate in Computer
Science in xxx. His reason for accepting what amounts to a demotion in
rank was the superior research environment of the Stanford Arificial
Intelligence Laboratory both in terms of facilities and in the quality of
students with whom he could work.
While here he has continued his research in automatic theorem proving
and mathematical theory of computation and started a new effort in
automatic programming.
If his promotion to Senior Research Associate is approved, he will
continue his personal research activity and will play a still more active
role in the supervision of graduate students since he will be able to
serve as a principal dissertation adviser. He will also be able to apply
for research support in his own name as principal investigator, and this
will benefit the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory by relieving the Director
from having to serve as formal principal investigator in some cases and will
enable this Luckham's part of the Laboratory's work to stand on its own
feet.
The primary justification for promoting David Luckham to Senior
Research Associate is the quality and quantity of his continuing scieetific
work. His early work in program schemas has stood the test of time and is
still referred to quite often. He continues in a leading position in
automatic theorem proving and is almost alone in successfully applying
automatic theorem proving to actual mathematical problems, albeit in a
limited domain of mathematics for which the present methods are suitable.
Recently he has started new efforts in developing systems for proving
assertions about computer programs incorporating his previous programs
for automatic theorem proving. In this, he is occupying a leading position
in what has become a very competitive field.
Most recently he has started an effort in automatic programming, i.e.
generating computer programs automatically from specifications of the
desired performance. There is a substantial probability of this work
obtaining independent support if we promote him to Senior Research Associate.
Finally, with the current lack of opportunity to expand the faculty
of the University, it becomes increasingly important to demonstrate a viable
career pattern in the research laboratories attached to the University.
The Artificial Intelligence Laboratories now has Arthur Samuel and Kenneth
Colby as Senior Research Associates and Luckham is a worthy addition. He
will be the first promotion from the rank of research associate.
The only reservation about Luckham expressed in the letters of
recommendation was the remark by Nilsson and Hoare that he is somewhat
disorganized. This may be so, but it hasn't affected his co-operation
with others in the Artificial Intelligence Laboratory or the Computer
Science Department in any substantial way. Moreover, is research productivity
justifies the promotion apart from any considerations of whether it
might have been larger were he more organized.