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Honorary Degree Conferral of Doctor of Science to Alonzo Church collection

 Collection — Box: 1
Identifier: 3-4-1216

Scope and Contents

Collection contains photographs and an album of announcements and photocopies of congratulatory letters from the awarding of the honorary degree of Doctor of Science to Alonzo Church by the State University of New York at Buffalo and the Symposium held in his honor at the University in 1990.

Dates

  • 1990

Creator

Language of Materials

Collection material in English.

Terms of Access

The Honorary Degree Conferral of Doctor of Science to Alonzo Church collection is open for research.

Copyright

Copyright of papers in the collection may be held by their authors, or the authors' heirs or assigns. Researchers must obtain the written permission of the holder(s) of copyright and the University Archives before publishing quotations from materials in the collection. Most papers may be copied in accordance with the library's usual procedures unless otherwise specified.

Biographical Note

Alonzo Church, born June 14, 1903, was a mathematician and philosopher and one of the most accomplished and respected logicians in the world. Church made several brilliant technical breakthroughs, any one of which would have established a permanent place for him in the field of logic. His work influenced mathematics, philosophy, linguistics, and computer science. He is best known for lambda calculus, Church–Turing thesis, Frege–Church ontology, and the Church–Rosser theorem.

When Church started working in the field of mathematical logic in the 1930s, it was an inconspicuous specialty on the fringe of mathematics. Church played a leading role in developing it into the major field it was in 1990. In 1936 he helped to found the Association for Symbolic Logic and was an exacting editor for the group's international publication, Journal of Symbolic Logic, for more than four decades. The journal helped merge streams of scholarship from mathematics, philosophy, linguistics and computer science.

An inspired teacher, Church was a professor of mathematics and philosophy at Princeton University from 1929-1967 and from 1967-1990 at the University of California at Los Angeles. He trained several of the most distinguished contemporary logicians, including Professors Martin Davis, Leon Henkin and Hartley Rogers, who spoke at the symposium in Church's honor at the University of Buffalo held May 18 and 19, 1990.

Prof. Church died August 11, 1995.

Source: Updated from the Commencement brochure in the album.

Extent

1.21 Linear Feet (1 flat box)

Abstract

Collection contains photographs and an album of announcements and photocopies of congratulatory letters from the awarding of the honorary degree of Doctor of Science to noted mathematician and philosopher Alonzo Church by the State University of New York at Buffalo and the Symposium held in his honor at the University in 1990.

Arrangement

This collection is arranged in original order.

Acquisition Information

Collection received from John Corcoran, November 2010.

Accruals and Additions

No further accruals are expected to this collection.

Related Resources

C0948, Alonzo Church Papers,1924-1995, Princeton University Library

Processing Information

Processed by Karen Spencer, February 2011.

Source

Title
Finding Aid for the Honorary Degree Conferral of Doctor of Science to Alonzo Church collection
Status
Completed
Author
Finding aid prepared by Karen Spencer.
Date
2011
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script
Language of description note
English

Repository Details

Part of the University Archives Repository

Contact:
420 Capen Hall
Buffalo New York 14260-1674 US
716-645-2916
716-645-3714 (Fax)