Susan Gerhart is a semi-retired

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 ...

Education

Susan Gerhart received her BA in Mathematics from

Ohio Wesleyan University Ohio Wesleyan University (OWU) is a private liberal arts college in Delaware, Ohio. It was founded in 1842 by methodist leaders and Central Ohio residents as a nonsectarian institution, and is a member of the Ohio Five – a consortium ...

, her MS in Communication Sciences from

University of Michigan , mottoeng = "Arts, Knowledge, Truth" , former_names = Catholepistemiad, or University of Michigania (1817–1821) , budget = $10.3 billion (2021) , endowment = $17 billion (2021)As o ...

, and her PhD in Computer Science from

Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. One of its predecessors was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools; it became the Carnegie Institute of Technology ...

. She completed her thesis "Verification of APL Programs" in 1972 under thesis advisor Donald W. Loveland. She credited

Sputnik Sputnik 1 (; see § Etymology) was the first artificial Earth satellite. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957 as part of the Soviet space program. It sent a radio signal back to Earth for t ...

with having inspired her to study science.

Career

Teaching

She has taught software engineering and computer science at Toronto,

Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...

Wang Institute of Graduate Studies The Wang Institute of Graduate Studies was an independent educational institution founded in 1979 by computer entrepreneur An Wang. Its purpose was to provide professional and continuing studies in the nascent field of software engineering. It wa ...

, and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. She established a project to develop curricula to increase security in aviation-oriented computing education. This project produced severa
papers
an

including one on buffer overflow vulnerabilities. Her other publications include "Toward a theory of test data selection", "An International Survey of Industrial Applications of Formal Methods. Volume 2. Case Studies", and "Do Web search engines suppress controversy?".

Systers

In 1987 Gerhart was one of the founding members of

Systers Systers, founded by Anita Borg, is an international electronic mailing list for technical women in computing. The Syster community strives to increase the number of women in computer science and improve work environments for women. The mailing list ...

, the oldest and largest

mailing list A mailing list is a collection of names and addresses used by an individual or an organization to send material to multiple recipients. The term is often extended to include the people subscribed to such a list, so the group of subscribers is re ...

for women in computing.

Macular Degeneration Advocacy

Having been personally impacted by

macular degeneration Macular degeneration, also known as age-related macular degeneration (AMD or ARMD), is a medical condition which may result in blurred or no vision in the center of the visual field. Early on there are often no symptoms. Over time, however, som ...

, she maintains the "As Your World Changes" blog on using technology, including podcasts, to overcome vision loss. In 2009 she spoke at the

IEEE The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is a 501(c)(3) professional association for electronic engineering and electrical engineering (and associated disciplines) with its corporate office in New York City and its operation ...

conference on Software Testing, Verification and Validation on "The Disability/Mobility Challenge: Formulating Criteria for Testing Accessibility and Usability".

References

External links

As Your World Changes blog

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gerhart, Susan American computer scientists Living people American women computer scientists Ohio Wesleyan University alumni University of Michigan alumni Carnegie Mellon University alumni Year of birth missing (living people)