Computer science is no longer just a technology--for nearly all of us, it has become a way of life. Whether we spend our days surfing the Internet, or merely use an automatic teller machine on occasion, computers have affected our lives. This collection of sixteen original essays by distinguished computer scientists celebrates the achievements of computer science research, and speculates about the unsolved problems in the field. Various essays address artificial intelligence, parallel programming, global information systems, and a host of other relevant topics. The book shows that long-term research in computer science is crucial and must not be driven solely by commercial considerations. The authors expose the difficult aspects of their topics in clear terms, and illustrate that computer science is now a full-fledged and growing intellectual discipline.

计算机科学不再只是一种技术--对我们几乎所有人来说，它已经成为一种生活方式。无论我们是整天在互联网上冲浪，还是只是偶尔使用一下自动取款机，计算机都影响了我们的生活。这本由杰出的计算机科学家撰写的16篇原创论文集，庆祝了计算机科学研究的成就，并对该领域未解决的问题进行了推测。各种文章涉及人工智能、并行编程、全球信息系统和其他一系列相关主题。本书表明，计算机科学的长期研究是至关重要的，决不能只受商业考虑的驱动。作者们以清晰的语言揭露了其主题的困难之处，并说明计算机科学现在是一门成熟的、不断发展的智力学科。