computer science

Patrick Peter Chan

Patrick Peter Chan 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 Patrick Peter Chan rather than just read about it. In short: Patrick Peter Chan is a Canadian computer scientist based in Silicon Valley, California. Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, he attended the University of British Columbia, and the University of Waterloo.

Key takeaways

Patrick Peter Chan 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 Patrick Peter Chan to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Patrick Peter Chan from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Patrick Peter Chan is a Canadian computer scientist based in Silicon Valley, California. Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, he attended the University of British Columbia, and the University of Waterloo. He holds a master's in Computer Science and has made some contributions to the field.

Education and career Patrick Chan got a BS degree from the University of British Columbia before moving on to earn his MS degree at the University of Waterloo. He got his first job at his alma mater, UBC, before finding employment at Digital. After leaving Digital, he joined Sun Microsystems Inc. where he helped James Gosling create Java. He later moved to work at KMart's BlueLight.com as the company's CTO. He then worked as VP of Engineering of Composite Software, a San Mateo–based firm specializing in virtual database integration. Currently, he works at Twitter in San Francisco.

Accomplishments & Awards While best known for his Java Almanac and Java Class Libraries publications, Chan's most significant work was as a founding member and lead developer of the original Java platform project at Sun Microsystems, Inc. His publication "Rooms" was an early conception that paved the way for the implementation of virtual desktops. While working at BlueLight.com, he was recognized by InformationWeek Magazine as being one of the top 25 influential CTOs in 2000. Chan was the winner of the 1998 Duke Award at JavaOne. In 2005, Chan earned a place in the 2006 World Settlers of Catan Championship by winning the qualifying tournament at the Origins Game Fair in Columbus, Ohio.

Publications

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Patrick Peter Chan

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Patrick Peter Chan 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 Patrick Peter Chan 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 Patrick Peter Chan 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 Patrick Peter Chan

In research: Patrick Peter Chan 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 Patrick Peter Chan 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: Patrick Peter Chan is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Canadian computer scientists, Computer scientist stubs, Living people, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Patrick Peter Chan 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 Patrick Peter Chan in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Patrick Peter Chan 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 Patrick Peter Chan out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Patrick Peter Chan in simple terms?

Why does Patrick Peter Chan 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 Patrick Peter Chan?

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 Patrick Peter Chan.