1927-

American Computer Scientist

The father of research in artificial intelligence (AI)—a term he coined—John McCarthy wrote the principal computer language for AI research, List Processing Language (LISP). He founded two of the most important AI laboratories in the world, and in latter years has been active in the movement for an "Electronic Bill of Rights" to govern electronic communications.

Born in Boston, Massachusetts, on September 4, 1927, McCarthy was the elder of two brothers. His father, John Patrick McCarthy, worked variously as a carpenter, fisherman, union organizer, and inventor; and his mother, Ida Glatt, was a Jewish Lithuanian involved in the suffrage movement, the effort to secure the vote for women. Both were members of the Communist Party of America, and McCarthy grew up in a politically charged atmosphere.

A sickly child, McCarthy turned to books for solace, and eventually his family moved to Los...