Claude Shannon

Summary

Claude Shannon is a human^[1]. His place of birth was Petoskey^[2]. He was born on +1916-04-30T00:00:00Z^[3]. He died in Medford^[4]. He died on +2001-02-24T00:00:00Z^[5]. He worked as a mathematician^[6], cryptographer^[7], computer scientist^[8], inventor^[9], and university teacher^[10]. He ranks in the top 0.37% of human entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (4,315 views/month, #3,694 of 1,000,298).^[11]

Key Facts

• Claude Shannon was born in Petoskey^[2].
• Claude Shannon passed away in Medford^[4].
• Claude Shannon was born on +1916-04-30T00:00:00Z^[3].
• Claude Shannon died on +2001-02-24T00:00:00Z^[5].
• Burial took place at Mount Auburn Cemetery^[12].
• Burial took place at Fairview Cemetery^[13].
• Among Claude Shannon's spouses was Betty Shannon^[14].
• Claude Shannon was married to Norma Barzman^[15].
• Claude Shannon held citizenship in United States^[16].
• Claude Shannon's professions included mathematician^[6].
• Claude Shannon's professions included cryptographer^[7].
• Claude Shannon worked as a computer scientist^[8].
• Claude Shannon's professions included inventor^[9].
• Claude Shannon worked as a university teacher^[10].
• Claude Shannon worked as an engineer^[17].
• Claude Shannon's field of work was probability theory^[18].
• Claude Shannon's field of work was electrical engineering^[19].
• Claude Shannon's field of work was information theory^[20].
• Claude Shannon's field of work was cybernetics^[21].
• Claude Shannon's field of work was cryptography^[22].
• Claude Shannon was employed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology^[23].
• Claude Shannon was employed by Bell Labs^[24].
• Claude Shannon was employed by Institute for Advanced Study^[25].
• Claude Shannon's education included a stint at University of Michigan^[26].
• Claude Shannon's education included a stint at Massachusetts Institute of Technology^[27].

Body

Origins and Family

Claude Shannon was born in Petoskey^[2]. He was born on +1916-04-30T00:00:00Z^[3].

Education

Educated at University of Michigan^[26], a public research university^[28], in United States^[29], founded in 1817^[30], headquartered in Ann Arbor^[31]; Massachusetts Institute of Technology^[27], a university^[32], in United States^[33], founded in 1861^[34], headquartered in Cambridge^[35]; and Gaylord High School^[36], a high school^[37], in United States^[38]. Doctoral advisors include Frank Lauren Hitchcock^[39] and Vannevar Bush^[40]. Academic degrees include Doctor of Philosophy^[41], Bachelor of Science^[42], and Master of Science^[43].

Career and Affiliations

Recorded occupations include mathematician^[6], cryptographer^[7], computer scientist^[8], inventor^[9], university teacher^[10], and engineer^[17]. Fields of work include probability theory^[18], a branch of mathematics^[44]; electrical engineering^[19], a branch of engineering^[45]; information theory^[20], a branch of science^[46]; cybernetics^[21], an academic discipline^[47]; and cryptography^[22], an academic discipline^[48]. Employers include Massachusetts Institute of Technology^[23], a university^[49], in United States^[50], founded in 1861^[51], headquartered in Cambridge^[52]; Bell Labs^[24], a privately held company^[53], in United States^[54], founded in 1925^[55], headquartered in Murray Hill^[56]; and Institute for Advanced Study^[25], a research institute^[57], in United States^[58], founded in 1930^[59], headquartered in Princeton^[60]. Doctoral students include Ivan Sutherland^[61], William Daniel Hillis^[62], Heinrich Arnold Ernst^[63], and William Robert Sutherland^[64].

Recognition

Awards received include Stuart Ballantine Medal^[65], a medallion^[66]; John Fritz Medal^[67], a science award^[68], in United States^[69], founded in 1902^[70]; Harold Pender Award^[71], an award^[72], in United States^[73], founded in 1972^[74]; Harvey Prize^[75], a science award^[76], in Israel^[77], founded in 1972^[78]; IEEE Medal of Honor^[79], a science award^[80], founded in 1917^[81]; and National Medal of Science^[82].

Personal Life

Spouses include Betty Shannon^[14], a mathematician^[83], 1922–2017^[84], of United States^[85] and Norma Barzman^[15], a writer^[86], 1920–2023^[87], of United States^[88].

Death and Burial

Claude Shannon died on +2001-02-24T00:00:00Z^[5]. He died in Medford^[4]. The cause of death was Alzheimer's disease^[89]. Recorded place of burial include Mount Auburn Cemetery^[12] and Fairview Cemetery^[13].

Works and Contributions

Things named for Claude Shannon include Nyquist–Shannon sampling theorem^[90], Shannon number^[91], Shannon–Hartley theorem^[92], Jensen–Shannon divergence^[93], Shannon–Weaver model^[94], Shannon's source coding theorem^[95], shannon^[96], and Whittaker–Shannon interpolation formula^[97].

Why It Matters

Claude Shannon ranks in the top 0.37% of human entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (4,315 views/month, #3,694 of 1,000,298).^[11] He has Wikipedia articles in 29 language editions, a strong signal of global cultural recognition.^[98] He is known by 73 alternative names across languages and contexts.^[99]

He has been cited as an influence by Edward O. Thorp^[100], a mathematician^[101], b. 1932^[102], of United States^[103], awarded the Fellow of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics^[104], specialised in probability theory^[105] and Leonard Kleinrock^[106], a mathematician^[107], b. 1934^[108], of United States^[109], awarded the IEEE Alexander Graham Bell Medal^[110], specialised in queueing theory^[111].

He is credited with the discovery of information entropy^[112], a mathematical expression^[113]; Shannon number^[114], a positive integer^[115]; wearable computer^[116]; signal-flow graph^[117]; and confusion and diffusion^[118], a property^[119]. Works attributed to him include A Mathematical Theory of Communication^[120], a scholarly article^[121], written by him^[122] and Communication Theory of Secrecy Systems^[123], a scholarly article^[124], written by him^[125]. Entities named for him include Nyquist–Shannon sampling theorem^[90], Shannon number^[91], Shannon–Hartley theorem^[92], Jensen–Shannon divergence^[93], Shannon–Weaver model^[94], and Shannon's source coding theorem^[95].

His notable doctoral advisees include Ivan Sutherland^[126] and William Daniel Hillis^[127].

FAQs

Where was Claude Shannon born?

Claude Shannon was born in Petoskey^[2].

Where did Claude Shannon die?

Claude Shannon died in Medford^[4].

Who was Claude Shannon married to?

Claude Shannon's spouses include Betty Shannon^[14] and Norma Barzman^[15].

What did Claude Shannon do for work?

Claude Shannon worked as mathematician^[6], cryptographer^[7], computer scientist^[8], inventor^[9], and university teacher^[10].

Where did Claude Shannon go to school?

Claude Shannon was educated at University of Michigan^[26], Massachusetts Institute of Technology^[27], and Gaylord High School^[36].

What awards did Claude Shannon receive?

Honors received include Stuart Ballantine Medal^[65], John Fritz Medal^[67], Harold Pender Award^[71], and Harvey Prize^[75].

Who did Claude Shannon influence?

Claude Shannon has been cited as an influence by Edward O. Thorp^[100] and Leonard Kleinrock^[106].

What did Claude Shannon discover?

Claude Shannon is credited as discoverer of information entropy^[112], Shannon number^[114], wearable computer^[116], and signal-flow graph^[117].