Dr. Richard Stearns is a Distinguished Institute Professor with the Biocomplexity Institute and Initiative at the University of Virginia. He has made pioneering contributions to several different areas of computer science including the theory of computation, formal languages, compilers, analysis of algorithms, database systems, and game theory. In 1993, Dr. Stearns received the prestigious ACM Alan M. Turing Award in recognition of ground-breaking joint research with Professor Juris Hartmanis (Cornell University), which established the field of computational complexity. 

He also holds the title of Distinguished Professor Emeritus in the Department of Computer Science at the University of Albany – State University of New York (SUNY), where he spent 22 years, including seven years as the Department Chair. Dr. Stearns has held additional academic appointments at several institutions including Hebrew University in Jerusalem; Mathematical Sciences Research Institute in Berkeley, California; and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in Troy, New York. He began his professional career in 1961 and spent 17 years with General Electric Research Laboratory, now known as GE Global Research, based in Schenectady, New York.

Research Interests

Computational complexity, Automata theory, Analysis of algorithms, Discrete dynamical systems, Game theory

Education

B.A. Mathematics, Carleton College, 1958    
Ph.D. Mathematics, Princeton University, 1961

Awards and Honors

ACM Alan M. Turing Award, 1993   
Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Fellow, 1994   
Distinguished Professor, State University of New York, 1994   
Associate Editor of SIAM Journal on Computing, 1972 to 1988

Lectures

Curious Facts About Nested Canalyzing Functions, 5th Heidelberg Laureate Forum, 2017  
Strategies for Extensive Form Games, 4th Heidelberg Laureate Forum, 2016