Department of Informatics, University of Oslo
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The Department of Informatics (
Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...
: ''Institutt for informatikk'') at the
University of Oslo The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...
is the oldest and largest department for informatics in
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...
. The department was in 2017 ranked number 1 in Norway, 3rd in Europe, and 12th in the world in Computer Science and Engineering by Academic Ranking of World Universities. Famous researchers that have been associated with the department includes
Turing Award The ACM A. M. Turing Award is an annual prize given by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) for contributions of lasting and major technical importance to computer science. It is generally recognized as the highest distinction in comput ...
winners such as
Kristen Nygaard Kristen Nygaard (27 August 1926 – 10 August 2002) was a Norwegian computer scientist, programming language pioneer, and politician. Internationally, Nygaard is acknowledged as the co-inventor of object-oriented programming and the programming ...
,
Ole-Johan Dahl Ole-Johan Dahl (12 October 1931 – 29 June 2002) was a Norwegian computer scientist. Dahl was a professor of computer science at the University of Oslo and is considered to be one of the fathers of Simula and object-oriented programming along w ...
and
Donald Knuth Donald Ervin Knuth ( ; born January 10, 1938) is an American computer scientist, mathematician, and professor emeritus at Stanford University. He is the 1974 recipient of the ACM Turing Award, informally considered the Nobel Prize of computer sc ...
.


History

The department was created in 1977, as a merger of Department of Numerical Mathematics at the Department of Mathematics and the Department of Cybernetics at the Department of Physics. However, the history of computer science at the university goes further back than that. In 1958, the university had received its large machine "FREDERIC", and Harald Keilhau held a programming course for those who needed the machine for their research. Ernst S. Selmer also gave a lecture on data processing from the mid-fifties, and from the sixties the first competence-giving courses in programming (based on
ALGOL ALGOL (; short for "Algorithmic Language") is a family of imperative computer programming languages originally developed in 1958. ALGOL heavily influenced many other languages and was the standard method for algorithm description used by the ...
and machine coding) were given by John Midtdal. In 1968,
Ole-Johan Dahl Ole-Johan Dahl (12 October 1931 – 29 June 2002) was a Norwegian computer scientist. Dahl was a professor of computer science at the University of Oslo and is considered to be one of the fathers of Simula and object-oriented programming along w ...
was appointed professor at the Department of Mathematics. At the beginning of the seventies, Dahl developed a course package in computer processing intended for lower grades, and wrote textbooks in syntax and
semantics Semantics (from grc, σημαντικός ''sēmantikós'', "significant") is the study of reference, meaning, or truth. The term can be used to refer to subfields of several distinct disciplines, including philosophy, linguistics and comp ...
in programming languages and in
algorithm In mathematics and computer science, an algorithm () is a finite sequence of rigorous instructions, typically used to solve a class of specific problems or to perform a computation. Algorithms are used as specifications for performing ...
s and data structures. One of Dahl's most influential publications at that time was ''Structured Programming'', which was published in 1972 and co-authored with Edsger W. Dijkstra and
Tony Hoare Sir Charles Antony Richard Hoare (Tony Hoare or C. A. R. Hoare) (born 11 January 1934) is a British computer scientist who has made foundational contributions to programming languages, algorithms, operating systems, formal verification, and ...
. In 1972, Rolf Nordhagen became head of the Computing Center at the university. At that time, Nordhagen started international collaborative projects that made important contributions to the foundation of networks and services. His leading role in UNINETT and
NORDUnet NORDUnet is an international collaboration between the National research and education networks in the Nordic countries. Members The members of NORDUnet are: * SUNET of Sweden * UNINETT of Norway * FUNET of Finland * Forskningsnettet of ...
was an apparent preamble for the
Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...
of today. Nordhagen was in 2014 posthumously honored with an admission into the
Internet Hall of Fame The Internet Hall of Fame is an honorary lifetime achievement award administered by the Internet Society (ISOC) in recognition of individuals who have made significant contributions to the development and advancement of the Internet.
. From 1972 to 1973,
Donald Knuth Donald Ervin Knuth ( ; born January 10, 1938) is an American computer scientist, mathematician, and professor emeritus at Stanford University. He is the 1974 recipient of the ACM Turing Award, informally considered the Nobel Prize of computer sc ...
spent a year at the university. Here he was to write the seventh volume in his book series ''
The Art of Computer Programming ''The Art of Computer Programming'' (''TAOCP'') is a comprehensive monograph written by the computer scientist Donald Knuth presenting programming algorithms and their analysis. Volumes 1–5 are intended to represent the central core of com ...
'', a volume that was to deal with programming languages. However, Knuth had only finished the first two volumes when he came to Oslo, and thus spent the year on the third volume next to teaching. The third volume in the series was published shortly after Knuth returned to Stanford University in 1972. Knuth's stay in Oslo also led to many from the university being given the opportunity to stay at Stanford. In the beginning, the newly started Department of Informatics was housed in the Mathematics Building at
Blindern Blindern is the main campus of the University of Oslo, located in Nordre Aker in Oslo, Norway. Campus Most of the departments of the University of Oslo are located at Blindern; other, smaller campuses include Sentrum (law), Gaustad (medicine) ...
. However, as there was a great shortage of space, the offices were scattered around on many different floors. After a couple of years, the department was moved to the physics building. However, the space problems persisted, and a process was initiated for the construction of a separate building for informatics. Central to this process were, among others, Lars Walløe, who brought with him rector Bjarne Waaler and
Gudmund Harlem Gudmund Harlem (24 July 1917 – 22 March 1988) was a Norwegian physician and politician for the Labour Party. He was the Norwegian Minister of Social Affairs from 1955 to 1961 and Norwegian Minister of Defence from 1961 to 1965 (except for a s ...
of
NTNF The Royal Norwegian Council for Scientific and Industrial Research ( no, Norges Teknisk-Naturvitenskapelige Forskningsråd) or NTNF was the first of five research councils established in Norway. It existed from 1946 until the end of 1992, when the f ...
on the plans for a new building in Gaustadbekkdalen. The building, now named after
Kristen Nygaard Kristen Nygaard (27 August 1926 – 10 August 2002) was a Norwegian computer scientist, programming language pioneer, and politician. Internationally, Nygaard is acknowledged as the co-inventor of object-oriented programming and the programming ...
, was completed in 1988, and would house the department, the
Norwegian Computing Center Norwegian Computing Center (NR, in Norwegian: ''Norsk Regnesentral'') is a private, independent, non-profit research foundation founded in 1952. NR carries out contract research and development in the areas of computing and quantitative methods fo ...
and the University's center for Information Technology.In 1983,
Pål Spilling Pål Spilling (October 29, 1934 – January 16, 2018) was a Norwegian Internet pioneer and professor at the University of Oslo and the UNIK Graduate Center at Kjeller in Norway. He obtained his cand.real. degree in physics from the University of ...
established the first functioning
TCP/IP The Internet protocol suite, commonly known as TCP/IP, is a framework for organizing the set of communication protocols used in the Internet and similar computer networks according to functional criteria. The foundational protocols in the suit ...
-based data network in Norway and Europe. The network connected the computer environments at the universities of Oslo,
Bergen Bergen (), historically Bjørgvin, is a city and municipality in Vestland county on the west coast of Norway. , its population is roughly 285,900. Bergen is the second-largest city in Norway. The municipality covers and is on the peninsula o ...
and
Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...
, as well as the local network at
Kjeller Kjeller is a village located near Lillestrøm in the municipality of Lillestrøm, Norway. It is located 25 kilometers north-east of Oslo. Name The Norse form of the name was probably ''Tjaldir''. This is then the plural of ''tjald'' n ' tent' ...
, which in turn ensured connection to the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. This was the first local network outside USA to be connected to the American Internet. Spilling along with his colleagues and fellow countrymen Dag Belsnes and Yngvar Lundh, later ended up on the list of 33 Internet pioneers in the world that were most significant in the development of basic Internet-technology. Their names are engraved into the bronze plaque roll of honour "Birth of the Internet" plaque at Stanford university in California. All three also received a Rosing Honorary Prize for their work on the development of the Internet. Both Spilling and Belsnes worked as professors at the department until their retirement. In 2021, Lundh and Spilling was inducted into the
Internet Hall of Fame The Internet Hall of Fame is an honorary lifetime achievement award administered by the Internet Society (ISOC) in recognition of individuals who have made significant contributions to the development and advancement of the Internet.
. Lack of space began to reappear in the early 2000s. In 2005, the ready signal was given to build a new building for computer science, the so-called "ifi2" building. At that time, the department was spread over several locations in Gaustadbekkdalen beyond the informatics building, such as Forskningsparken. The new building Ole-Johan Dahl's house, named after Norway's first professor of computer science, was opened in 2011. The building is located next to Kristen Nygaard's house,
Norwegian Computing Center Norwegian Computing Center (NR, in Norwegian: ''Norsk Regnesentral'') is a private, independent, non-profit research foundation founded in 1952. NR carries out contract research and development in the areas of computing and quantitative methods fo ...
, Oslo Science Park and
SINTEF SINTEF ( no, Stiftelsen for industriell og teknisk forskning), headquartered in Trondheim, Norway, is an independent research organization founded in 1950 that conducts contract research and development projects. SINTEF has 2000 employees from 7 ...
.


Student life

The department has over 15 types of student societies in a variety of different topics, ranging from sports-related to professional associations. One of the most notable societies is Cybernetisk Selskab (CYB), which is the oldest student society at the department, having been established in 1969 and registered through SiO. CYB operates a
pub A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
and
café A coffeehouse, coffee shop, or café is an establishment that primarily serves coffee of various types, notably espresso, latte, and cappuccino. Some coffeehouses may serve cold drinks, such as iced coffee and iced tea, as well as other non ...
in the basement of the department, calle
Escape
Escape has since 2012 been run as a café five days a week. In addition, a student pub is held every Friday, as well as various other events such as board game night, whiskey seminars, the Thursday club and theme parties. CYB is also arranging
skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee ( ...
trips to
Hemsedal Hemsedal is a municipality in Viken county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Hallingdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Trøym. Hemsedal lies on the Norwegian National Road 52 (Rv 52). Hemseda ...
, gala at the department and other types of events for students at the department. Escape was in 2017 named Oslo's best student pub.


Notable people

Some of the notable people associated with the department includes: *
Kristen Nygaard Kristen Nygaard (27 August 1926 – 10 August 2002) was a Norwegian computer scientist, programming language pioneer, and politician. Internationally, Nygaard is acknowledged as the co-inventor of object-oriented programming and the programming ...
*
Ole-Johan Dahl Ole-Johan Dahl (12 October 1931 – 29 June 2002) was a Norwegian computer scientist. Dahl was a professor of computer science at the University of Oslo and is considered to be one of the fathers of Simula and object-oriented programming along w ...
*
Donald Knuth Donald Ervin Knuth ( ; born January 10, 1938) is an American computer scientist, mathematician, and professor emeritus at Stanford University. He is the 1974 recipient of the ACM Turing Award, informally considered the Nobel Prize of computer sc ...
* Gisle Hannemyr *
Trygve Reenskaug Trygve Mikkjel Heyerdahl Reenskaug (born 21 June 1930) is a Norwegian computer scientist and professor emeritus of the University of Oslo. He formulated the model–view–controller (MVC) pattern for graphical user interface (GUI) software des ...
* Hans Petter Langtangen * Lars Monrad-Krohn *
Pål Spilling Pål Spilling (October 29, 1934 – January 16, 2018) was a Norwegian Internet pioneer and professor at the University of Oslo and the UNIK Graduate Center at Kjeller in Norway. He obtained his cand.real. degree in physics from the University of ...
* Rolf Nordhagen


References

{{Reflist Educational institutions established in 1977 1977 establishments in Norway University of Oslo