computer science

Jeanne Ferrante

Jeanne Ferrante is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Jeanne Ferrante rather than just read about it. In short: Jeanne Ferrante (born January 3, 1949) is an American computer scientist active in the field of compiler technology. As a Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of California, San Diego's Jacobs School of Engineering, Ferrante has made important contributions regarding optimization and parallelization.

Key takeaways

Jeanne Ferrante belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Jeanne Ferrante to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Jeanne Ferrante from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Jeanne Ferrante (born January 3, 1949) is an American computer scientist active in the field of compiler technology. As a Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of California, San Diego's Jacobs School of Engineering, Ferrante has made important contributions regarding optimization and parallelization.

Early life and education Ferrante was born on January 3, 1949. She completed her Bachelor of Arts degree in natural sciences from Hofstra University in 1969 and her PhD in mathematics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1974. During her undergraduate studies, Ferrante originally wished to pursue a career as a high school chemistry teacher but was encouraged by a female professor to pursue a career in mathematics.

Career Following her PhD, Ferrante taught at Tufts University until 1978 when she became a Research Staff Member at IBM's Thomas J. Watson Research Center. While with IBM, she worked on computational complexity problems such as the theory of rational order and first order theory of real addition. In the 1980s, Ferrante collaborated with various researchers at IBM to develop the Static Single Assignment form (SSA). The SSA is a data structure that allows for more efficient methods of transforming the user's program to machine code. Ferrante was later recognized for her collaborative work with the SSA form by the Association for Computing Machinery with their 2006 SIGPLAN Programming Languages Achievement Award. In 1992, Ferrante and her husband Larry Carter decided to look for academic jobs after learning of major changes coming to IBM's research division. After being encouraged by Francine Berman to apply to University of California, San Diego's (UCSD) Jacobs School of Engineering, they were both offered full professorships in 1994. Upon joining the faculty of UCSD, Ferrante served as the Computer Science and Engineering Department Chair from 1996 to 1999 and Associate Dean of Engineering from 2002 to 2013. In her first year as department chair, Ferrante was elected a Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). As UCSD's Associate Dean, Ferrante focused on developing programs to encourage women to pursue careers in science. In 2004, she founded the Teams in Engineering Service (TIES) program which matches UCSD undergraduates with San Diego non-profit organizations to "solve technology-based problems for their community clients." In the same year, Ferrante was elected a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for her "contributions to optimizing and parallelizing compilers." She subsequently became one of the only UCSD academics to hold fellowships simultaneously in IEEE and the ACM. Later, Ferrante served as the co-principal investigator of the Information Technology Experiences for Students and Teachers (ITEST) award program to create a multiplayer online science challenge game designed specifically for middle and high school aged girls. As a result of her efforts, Ferrante received the 2007 Athena Educator Pinnacle Award. In 2008, Ferrante was appointed the inaugural Associate Vice Chancellor for Faculty Equity, which was created in response to recommendations of the UCSD Workgroup on the Report of the UC President's Task Force on Faculty Diversity. In this role, Ferrante was one of three faculty members to receive a 2012 Diversity Award for their efforts to promote diversity and equity on the UCSD campus. Ferrante remained active within the UCSD Jacobs School of Engineering until 2014 when she became a professor Emeritus.

References

External links Jeanne Ferrante publications indexed by Google Scholar

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Jeanne Ferrante

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Jeanne Ferrante claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Jeanne Ferrante before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Jeanne Ferrante ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Jeanne Ferrante

In research: Jeanne Ferrante appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Jeanne Ferrante in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Jeanne Ferrante is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1949 births, 21st-century American women, American computer scientists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Jeanne Ferrante outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Jeanne Ferrante in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Jeanne Ferrante means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Jeanne Ferrante out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Jeanne Ferrante in simple terms?

Why does Jeanne Ferrante matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Jeanne Ferrante?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Jeanne Ferrante.