Father of Java programming language shares career wisdom at sold out event

To computer scientists, James Gosling is a rock star. This was evident at the March 13 event where a sold out crowd of Faculty of Science alumni, faculty members and students gathered to welcome back to campus one of their own for a distinguished alumni award and keynote presentation.

Gosling, who exudes a Silicon Valley-style, amenable and down to earth demeanor, set the stage by sharing historical photos highlighting his heritage of growing up in Southern Alberta.

He fondly shared his early campus memories – when at the young age of 14 (well before enrolling as a student) he landed a job in the Department of Physics to run the data analysis unit for the upper atmospheric physics research team.

“I got into computers because it was free,” he admitted. “I was passionate about electrical engineering but the parts needed were too expensive and I couldn’t afford it.”

Gosling formally enrolled in the Department of Computer Science and graduated from the University of Calgary in 1977 with a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science.

“The funny thing is that I didn’t really graduate from the U of C the proper way,” he laughed. “I didn’t fulfill all the requirements of the degree because I had taken too many courses in computer science and not enough extra-curricular courses! Fortunately, the department head of the time came to my defence and everything was sorted out,” said the gifted programmer, who later completed a PhD at Carnegie Mellon University in 1983.

Following a rapid rise in academia, Gosling spent 16 years working at Sun Microsystem where he developed the Java programming language – commonly used on the World Wide Web. He went on to work for IT giants Oracle and Google.

“Today, every cell phone and financial transaction goes through Java code,” he humbly explained. “With such a wide span of application for the code, you can imagine that I was a pretty stressed out guy on December 31, 1999, on the eve of Y2K,” he recalled.

His contributions to the field of computer science were recognized with an honorary degree from the University of Calgary in 1999 and the Order of Canada in 2007.

Today, he works at Liquid Robotics Inc. where he develops robots that travel to sea in order to gather atmospheric data and conduct research to help address big challenges the world faces, including global climate change, national security, hurricane and tsunami warning, and offshore energy and resource management.

“My goal has always been to develop useful things and to make the world around me more intelligent,” he concluded.

The talk – attended by a wide range of alumni spanning as far back as 1974 and covering all disciplines of science – wrapped up with an engaging Q&A session and a lineup of students keen to snap selfies with the honorary guest.

Carey Williamson, head of the Department of Computer Science, says Gosling’s work has been foundational to the discipline and his story continues to inspire students to this day.

“From humble beginnings in our very own department, he has transformed the introductory programming language experience for an entire generation of computer scientists, and for many non-computer scientists as well,” says Williamson. “I think that is a very inspirational story.”

Ken Barker, dean for the Faculty of Science and emcee for the ceremony, agrees: “Through his commitment to excellence and tremendous ability to tackle key challenges using outstanding creativity, James has set the bar high for current and future crops of students our alumni,” Barker said.

Andrei Gavrilov, a 16-year-old robotics and mathematics whiz from Webber Academy, attended the event with his mother, Marina Gavrilova, associate professor in the Department of Computer Science.

“I don’t think I blinked once during Mr. Gosling’s presentation,” admitted Gavrilov who hopes to enroll at the University of Calgary in the near future. “He shared examples of amazing opportunities in the realm of programming and this has inspired me to continue in this exciting field.”

Daryl Rasmussen, the incoming president of the Computer Science Alumni Chapter and a graduate from the classes of 1989 and 1993, also enjoyed Gosling’s down-to-earth and engaging presentation.

“James’ talk reminded all of us in attendance of the importance of pursuing our goals and of our opportunity in leveraging our IT knowledge to make a difference,” she said. “It’s always wonderful for alumni to return to campus to experience how much the Department of Computer Science and our discipline is vibrant,” she added.

The next Faculty of Science Alumni event will be held on April 10 for a keynote by computer scientist Tom Keenan, titled Technology and Creepiness.