Richard Earl Korf is an American computer scientist whose research in

artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is the capability of computer, computational systems to perform tasks typically associated with human intelligence, such as learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and decision-making. It is a field of re ...

has focused on heuristic search methods, including the invention of

iterative deepening depth-first search In computer science, iterative deepening search or more specifically iterative deepening depth-first search (IDS or IDDFS) is a state space/graph search strategy in which a depth-limited version of depth-first search is run repeatedly with incre ...

and

iterative deepening A* Iterative deepening A* (IDA*) is a graph traversal and path search algorithm that can find the shortest path between a designated start node and any member of a set of goal nodes in a weighted graph. It is a variant of iterative deepening depth- ...

, often using puzzles as test cases for his algorithms. In 1997, he wrote the first computer program that could optimally solve the Rubik's Cube puzzle. He is a

professor emeritus ''Emeritus/Emerita'' () is an honorary title granted to someone who retirement, retires from a position of distinction, most commonly an academic faculty position, but is allowed to continue using the previous title, as in "professor emeritus". ...

of computer science at the

University of California, Los Angeles The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...

(UCLA).

Education and career

Korf majored in electrical engineering and computer science at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

, working there with

Gerald Jay Sussman Gerald Jay Sussman (born February 8, 1947) is the Panasonic Professor of Electrical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He has been involved in artificial intelligence (AI) research at MIT since 1964. His research ha ...

and graduating in 1977. He continued his studies in computer science at

Carnegie Mellon University Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. The institution was established in 1900 by Andrew Carnegie as the Carnegie Technical Schools. In 1912, it became the Carnegie Institu ...

, received a master's degree there in 1980, and completed his Ph.D. in 1983. His dissertation, ''Learning to Solve Problems by Searching for Macro-Operators'', was supervised by

Herbert A. Simon Herbert Alexander Simon (June 15, 1916 – February 9, 2001) was an American scholar whose work influenced the fields of computer science, economics, and cognitive psychology. His primary research interest was decision-making within organi ...

. He became Herbert M. Singer Assistant Professor of Computer Science at

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in 1983, then moved to UCLA in 1985. There, he was promoted to associate professor in 1988 and full professor in 1995.

Recognition

Korf was elected as a Fellow of the

Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence The Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) is an international Learned society, scientific society devoted to promote research in, and responsible use of, artificial intelligence. AAAI also aims to increase public under ...

in 1994, "for contributions to the development and analysis of heuristic search methods". Korf's 1990 paper "Real-time heuristic search" was recognized as the 2016 ''Artificial Intelligence'' journal classic paper award winner.

References

External links

Home page
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Korf, Richard E. Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American computer scientists Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni Carnegie Mellon University alumni Columbia University faculty University of California, Los Angeles faculty Fellows of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence