The Society of Text

Michael Lesk has put his computer expertise to work helping libraries and other institutions with digital computer technology.

Lesk's ties to the computer world really began in the 1960s; he did retrieval code work for the SMART project while acquiring a Ph.D. in Chemical Physics. In the 1970s he helped the Unix computer processing project come to life, providing input into creating word processing, networking, and other features. The following decade Lesk ran a research group at Bellcore and focused on computer-format dictionary and geographic programs.

In the 1990s Lesk centered on chemistry computer applications. He helped organize OCLC and other online Internet search engines.

Along the way, Michael Lesk also worked with the Commission of Preservation and Access concerning digital preservation; his journeys in the broad computer field have included stops in New York, Massachusetts, and London. As visitor professor in computer science at London's University College, Lesk also serves as the division director of the information and intelligent systems wing of the National Science Foundation. In 1994, Usenix awarded Lesk The Flame, its lifetime achievement award.

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