# Sally Floyd

> American computer scientist (1950-2019)

**Wikidata**: [Q7541](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7541)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sally_Floyd)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/sally-floyd

## Summary
Sally Floyd was an American computer scientist who made significant contributions to computer networking, particularly in congestion control and internet architecture, and was recognized with awards including the IEEE Internet Award and ACM Fellow status.

## Biography
- Born: May 20, 1950, Charlottesville, United States
- Nationality: United States
- Education: Doctor of Philosophy from University of California, Berkeley; attended Merritt College
- Known for: Internet congestion control and network protocols
- Employer(s): University of California, Berkeley; Bay Area Rapid Transit; Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; International Computer Science Institute (until 2009)
- Field(s): Computer networking

## Contributions
Sally Floyd made significant contributions to computer networking and internet congestion control. Her notable work includes RFC 2309: Recommendations on Queue Management and Congestion Avoidance in the Internet (published in 1998), which established guidelines for managing network congestion. She also developed Random Early Detection (RED) gateways for congestion avoidance, scalable timers for soft state protocols, and a reliable multicast framework for lightweight sessions and application-level framing. These contributions helped improve network performance and stability in the Internet.

## FAQs
### Q: What was Sally Floyd's most significant contribution to computer networking?
A: She developed key congestion control mechanisms including RFC 2309 and Random Early Detection (RED) gateways, which improved Internet performance and stability.

### Q: What awards did Sally Floyd receive?
A: She received the IEEE Internet Award in 2005 for contributions to Internet architecture, the SIGCOMM Award in 2007, and was named an ACM Fellow in 2001.

### Q: What was her relationship with Richard M. Karp?
A: She was a doctoral student of Richard M. Karp at the University of California, Berkeley.

## Why They Matter
Sally Floyd's work fundamentally improved the reliability and performance of the Internet by developing congestion control mechanisms that prevent network bottlenecks. Her contributions to queue management and congestion avoidance have been incorporated into standard Internet protocols and continue to influence network design and performance optimization in modern computer systems. Without her work, the Internet would likely experience more frequent congestion and performance degradation, affecting everything from web browsing to cloud services.

## Notable For
- Received the IEEE Internet Award in 2005 for contributions to Internet architecture
- Named an ACM Fellow in 2001
- Authored RFC 2309 on queue management and congestion avoidance
- Developed Random Early Detection (RED) gateways for congestion control
- Member of the Internet Architecture Board

## Body
### Early Life and Education
Sally Jean Floyd was born on May 20, 1950, in Charlottesville, Virginia. She attended Merritt College before earning her PhD in computer science from the University of California, Berkeley under the guidance of Richard M. Karp. Her father was Edwin E. Floyd.

### Career and Affiliations
Floyd had a distinguished career at the University of California, Berkeley, where she was affiliated with the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences. She also worked at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and served as a researcher at the International Computer Science Institute until 2009. Throughout her career, she was a member of the Internet Architecture Board and was recognized as an ACM Fellow in 2001.

### Research Contributions
Floyd's research focused on computer networking and internet congestion control. Her most significant contribution was RFC 2309: Recommendations on Queue Management and Congestion Avoidance in the Internet, published in 1998. This document established guidelines for managing network congestion and has become a foundational reference for network engineers. She also developed Random Early Detection (RED) gateways, which were among the first mechanisms to proactively detect and mitigate network congestion before it became severe.

### Professional Recognition
In 2005, Floyd received the IEEE Internet Award for her contributions to the Internet architecture, particularly in the areas of congestion control, traffic modeling, and active queue management. She was also awarded the SIGCOMM Award in 2007 for her work in computer networking. Her work has had lasting impact on the design and implementation of Internet protocols.

### Legacy
Sally Floyd's work has fundamentally changed how networks handle congestion and maintain stability. Her contributions have been incorporated into standard Internet protocols and continue to influence network design and performance optimization in modern computer systems. She was known for her collaborative approach and ability to bridge theoretical computer science with practical network engineering solutions.

### Personal Life and Death
Floyd passed away on August 25, 2019, in Berkeley, California, due to gallbladder cancer. She was remembered by colleagues and peers as a dedicated researcher who made significant contributions to the field of computer networking.

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## References

1. Sally Floyd, Who Helped Things Run Smoothly Online, Dies at 69
2. [Source](http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/iel5/7755/32073/01492363.pdf?arnumber=1492363)
3. [Source](http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/nem.755/full)
4. [Source](http://www.researchgate.net/publication/3673902_Congestion_control_in_TCP_performance_of_binary_congestionnotification_enhanced_TCP_compared_to_Reno_and_Tahoe_TCP/file/50463517ebc03c7608.pdf)
5. [Source](https://ee.lbl.gov/floyd/)
6. [Source](http://www.icir.org/floyd/)
7. [Source](https://www.ieee.org/content/dam/ieee-org/ieee/web/org/about/awards/recipients/internet-rl.pdf)
8. [Source](https://awards.acm.org/fellows/award-recipients)
9. Mathematics Genealogy Project
10. [Source](https://www.iab.org/2019/08/27/sally-floyd/)