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Donald Bitzer
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Donald Lester Bitzer (January 1, 1934 – December 10, 2024) was an American electrical engineer and computer scientist. He was the co-inventor of the plasma display and was widely regarded as the "father of PLATO".
Key Information
Life and career
[edit]Donald Lester Bitzer was born in East St. Louis, Illinois, on January 1, 1934.[1][2][3] He grew up in Collinsville, Illinois.[3] Bitzer received three degrees in electrical engineering (B.S., 1955; M.S., 1956; Ph.D., 1960) from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.[4]
Bitzer held several patents in numerous areas, while the PLATO computer system, the first system to combine graphics and touchscreens, is the most famous of his inventions.[5]
Bitzer co-invented the flat plasma display panel in 1964.[6]
In 1974, Bitzer was elected as a member into the National Academy of Engineering for "his leadership in the utilization and development of technology for improving the effectiveness of education".
From 1989, Bitzer was a Distinguished University Research Professor of Computer Science at North Carolina State University.[7]
Bitzer was married to Maryann Drost, a nurse and educator, from 1955 until her death in 2022 and had a son, along with three grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.[8][3] He died of congestive heart failure at home in Cary, North Carolina, on December 10, 2024, at the age of 90.[9][3]
Awards
[edit]In 1973, the National Academy of Engineering presented Bitzer with the Vladimir K. Zworykin Award, which honors the inventor of the iconoscope.[10]
Bitzer was a designated National Associate, an honor which was granted to him by the National Academies in 2002. He was also a member of the American Society for Engineering Education.[7]
- Member of the National Academy of Engineering (1974)[11]
- Computer Society Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (1982)[12]
- Slottow Creativity Award (1989)[13]
- Emmy Award (2002)[14]
- Inducted into National Inventors Hall of Fame (2013)[15]
- Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (2018)[16]
- Holladay Medal (2019)[17]
- Fellow of the Computer History Museum (2022)[18]
References
[edit]- ^ Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame 2006 inductee bio. (PDF). October 17, 2006. Archived October 12, 2011, at the Wayback Machine.
- ^ Weber, Marc (July 27, 2022). "Oral History of Donald L. Bitzer" (PDF). Computer History Museum. p. 1. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 14, 2024. Retrieved December 16, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Smith, Harrison (December 14, 2024). "Donald Bitzer, a pioneer of cyberspace and plasma screens, dies at 90". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 16, 2024.
- ^ "Donald L. Bitzer". Grainger College of Engineering. Archived from the original on May 12, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
- ^ Valentine, Ashish (November 26, 2014). "Professor Don Bitzer: Father of PLATO discusses his work". ECE Illinois. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
- ^ "Dr. Donald Bitzer". North Carolina State University News. November 29, 2011. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
- ^ a b "Alma Mater Inducts Bitzer". North Carolina State University. March 23, 2011. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
- ^ Brown-Wynne Funeral Home (May 7, 2022). "Maryann Bitzer". The News-Gazette (Champaign–Urbana). Archived from the original on December 13, 2024. Retrieved December 13, 2024.
- ^ Gordon, Brian (December 12, 2024). "Donald Bitzer, NC State professor who made plasma screen TVs possible, dies at 90". The News & Observer. Retrieved December 13, 2024.
- ^ "College of Engineering at NC State University, Achieve!". College of Engineering of NC State University. Archived from the original on December 30, 2007. Retrieved October 21, 2007.
- ^ "NAE Elects 78 New Members". Science. 184 (4135): 446. 1974. doi:10.1126/science.184.4135.446. PMID 17736512.
- ^ "Rouskas named IEEE Fellow" (PDF). North Carolina State University. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 17, 2022. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
- ^ "Donald L. Bitzer and H. Gene Slottow Creativity Award". ECE Illinois. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
- ^ Barbaro, Michael (October 7, 2002). "The Emmy Goes to . . . Flat-Screen Plasma TV". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
- ^ "Donald L. Bitzer". National Inventors Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on May 20, 2020. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
- ^ "Bitzer named Fellow of National Academy of Inventors". National Academy of Inventors. May 2, 2018. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
- ^ Packard, Emily (May 7, 2019). "Two Faculty Win Holladay Medal". Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost. Archived from the original on September 4, 2019. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
- ^ "2022 Fellow Awards". Computer History Museum. Archived from the original on September 7, 2024. Retrieved December 13, 2024.
External links
[edit]- NCSU Faculty Profile
- Oral history interview with Donald L. Bitzer. Charles Babbage Institute, University of Minnesota. Bitzer discusses his relationship with Control Data Corporation during the development of the PLATO system.
- Oral history interview with Thomas Muir Gallie. Charles Babbage Institute, University of Minnesota. Gallie, a program officer at the National Science Foundation, describes the impact of Bitzer and the PLATO system.
- University of Illinois Computer-based Education Research Laboratory PLATO Reports, PLATO Documents, and CERL Progress Reports. Charles Babbage Institute, University of Minnesota. Archival collection that contains internal and external reports and publications related to the development of PLATO and its operations.
