Arto K. Salomaa (born 6 June 1934) is a
Finnish
Finnish may refer to:
* Something or someone from, or related to Finland
* Culture of Finland
* Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland
* Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people
* Finnish cuisine
See also ...
mathematician
A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems.
Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change.
History
On ...
and
computer scientist
A computer scientist is a person who is trained in the academic study of computer science.
Computer scientists typically work on the theoretical side of computation, as opposed to the hardware side on which computer engineers mainly focus (al ...
. His research career, which spans over forty years, is focused on
formal languages
In logic, mathematics, computer science, and linguistics, a formal language consists of string (computer science), words whose symbol (formal), letters are taken from an alphabet (formal languages), alphabet and are well-formedness, well-formed ...
and
automata theory
Automata theory is the study of abstract machines and automata, as well as the computational problems that can be solved using them. It is a theory in theoretical computer science. The word ''automata'' comes from the Greek word αὐτόματο ...
.
Early life and education
Salomaa was born in
Turku
Turku ( ; ; sv, Åbo, ) is a city and former capital on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River, in the region of Finland Proper (''Varsinais-Suomi'') and the former Turku and Pori Province (''Turun ja Porin lääni''; ...
,
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
on June 6, 1934. He earned a
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...
from the
University of Turku
sv, Åbo universitet
, latin_name = Universitas Aboensis
, image_name = University of Turku.svg
, motto = ''Vapaan kansan lahja vapaalle tieteelle''
, established = 1920
, type ...
in 1954 and a
PhD from the same university in 1960. Salomaa's father was a professor of philosophy at the
University of Turku
sv, Åbo universitet
, latin_name = Universitas Aboensis
, image_name = University of Turku.svg
, motto = ''Vapaan kansan lahja vapaalle tieteelle''
, established = 1920
, type ...
.
Salomaa was introduced to the theory of automata and formal languages during seminars at
Berkeley
Berkeley most often refers to:
*Berkeley, California, a city in the United States
**University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California
* George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher
Berkeley may also refer ...
given by
John Myhill
John R. Myhill Sr. (11 August 1923 – 15 February 1987) was a British mathematician.
Education
Myhill received his Ph.D. from Harvard University under Willard Van Orman Quine in 1949. He was professor at SUNY Buffalo from 1966 until his death ...
in 1957.
Career
In 1965, Salomaa became a professor of mathematics at the
University of Turku
sv, Åbo universitet
, latin_name = Universitas Aboensis
, image_name = University of Turku.svg
, motto = ''Vapaan kansan lahja vapaalle tieteelle''
, established = 1920
, type ...
, a position he retired from in 1999. He also spent two years in the late 1960s at the
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by resident ...
in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, and two years in the 1970s at
Aarhus University
Aarhus University ( da, Aarhus Universitet, abbreviated AU) is a public research university with its main campus located in Aarhus, Denmark. It is the second largest and second oldest university in Denmark. The university is part of the Coimbra Gr ...
in
Aarhus
Aarhus (, , ; officially spelled Århus from 1948 until 1 January 2011) is the second-largest city in Denmark and the seat of Aarhus Municipality. It is located on the eastern shore of Jutland in the Kattegat sea and approximately northwest ...
,
Denmark
)
, song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast")
, song_type = National and royal anthem
, image_map = EU-Denmark.svg
, map_caption =
, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark
...
.
[.]
Salomaa was president of the European Association for Theoretical Computer Science
The European Association for Theoretical Computer Science (EATCS) is an international organization with a European focus, founded in 1972. Its aim is to facilitate the exchange of ideas and results among theoretical computer scientists as well as ...
from 1979 until 1985.
Publications
Salomaa has authored or co-authored 46 textbooks, including ''Theory of Automata
Automata theory is the study of abstract machines and automata, as well as the computational problems that can be solved using them. It is a theory in theoretical computer science. The word ''automata'' comes from the Greek word αὐτόματο ...
'' (1969), ''Formal Languages
In logic, mathematics, computer science, and linguistics, a formal language consists of string (computer science), words whose symbol (formal), letters are taken from an alphabet (formal languages), alphabet and are well-formedness, well-formed ...
'' (1973), ''The Mathematical Theory of L-Systems
An L-system or Lindenmayer system is a parallel rewriting system and a type of formal grammar. An L-system consists of an alphabet of symbols that can be used to make strings, a collection of production rules that expand each symbol into som ...
'' (1980, with Grzegorz Rozenberg
Grzegorz Rozenberg (born 14 March 1942, Warsaw) is a Polish and Dutch computer scientist.
His primary research areas are natural computing,
formal language and automata theory, graph transformations, and concurrent systems.
He is referre ...
), ''Jewels of Formal Language Theory'' (1981) ''Public-Key Cryptography
Public-key cryptography, or asymmetric cryptography, is the field of cryptographic systems that use pairs of related keys. Each key pair consists of a public key and a corresponding private key. Key pairs are generated with cryptographic alg ...
'' (1990) and ''DNA Computing
DNA computing is an emerging branch of unconventional computing which uses DNA, biochemistry, and molecular biology hardware, instead of the traditional electronic computing. Research and development in this area concerns theory, experiments, a ...
'' (1998, with Grzegorz Rozenberg
Grzegorz Rozenberg (born 14 March 1942, Warsaw) is a Polish and Dutch computer scientist.
His primary research areas are natural computing,
formal language and automata theory, graph transformations, and concurrent systems.
He is referre ...
and Gheorghe Paun Gheorghe is a Romanian given name and surname. It is a variant of George, also a name in Romanian but with soft Gs. It may refer to:
Given name
* Gheorghe Adamescu
* Gheorghe Albu
* Gheorghe Alexandrescu
* Gheorghe Andriev
* Gheorghe Apostol
* ...
). With Rozenberg, Salomaa edited the ''Handbook of Formal Languages'' (1997), a 3-volume, 2000-page reference on formal language theory
In logic, mathematics, computer science, and linguistics, a formal language consists of words whose letters are taken from an alphabet and are well-formed according to a specific set of rules.
The alphabet of a formal language consists of symb ...
. These books have often become standard references in their respective areas. For example, ''Formal Languages'' was reported in 1991 to be among the 100 most cited texts in mathematics.[
Salomaa has also published over 400 articles in scientific journals during his professional career. He has authored also non-scientific articles such as "What computer scientists should know about sauna". After his retirement, Arto Salomaa has published almost another 100 scientific articles.
]
Awards and recognition
Salomaa has been awarded the title of Academician
An academician is a full member of an artistic, literary, engineering, or scientific academy. In many countries, it is an honorific title used to denote a full member of an academy that has a strong influence on national scientific life. In syst ...
by the Academy of Finland The Academy of Finland ( fi, Suomen Akatemia, sv, Finlands Akademi) is a governmental funding body for scientific research in Finland. It is based in Helsinki. Yearly, the Academy administers over 260 million euros to Finnish research activities. O ...
,[Academy of Finland, .] one of twelve living Finnish individuals awarded the title. He also received the EATCS Award
The European Association for Theoretical Computer Science (EATCS) is an international organization with a European focus, founded in 1972. Its aim is to facilitate the exchange of ideas and results among theoretical computer scientists as well as ...
in 2004. Salomaa has received seven honorary degrees.[ On June 13, 2013, Salomaa was awarded a Doctor Honoris Causa from the ]University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by resident ...
.
Personal life
Salomaa married in 1959.[.] He has two children, Kirsti and Kai, the latter of whom is a professor of Computer Science at Queen's University at Kingston
Queen's University at Kingston, commonly known as Queen's University or simply Queen's, is a public research university in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Queen's holds more than of land throughout Ontario and owns Herstmonceux Castle in East Suss ...
and also works in the field of formal languages and automata theory.
References
External links
*
Arto Salomaa home page
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Salomaa, Arto
1934 births
Living people
People from Turku
University of Turku alumni
Academic personnel of the University of Turku
University of Western Ontario faculty
Aarhus University faculty
Finnish mathematicians
Finnish computer scientists
Members of the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters
Members of Academia Europaea