[Chapter-delegates] NEWS RELEASE: Trailblazing CSNET Network Receives 2009 Jonathan B. Postel Service Award

[Greg Wood]

Hello,
For your reference, the news release below will be publicly  
distributed at 1500 UTC today (29 July  2009).
Regards,
-Greg

+++++

Trailblazing CSNET Network Receives 2009 Jonathan B. Postel Service  
Award

Internet Society recognizes leaders of effort that pointed the way  
towards today's Internet

Stockholm, Sweden - 29 July 2009 - The Internet Society (ISOC) today  
awarded the Jonathan B. Postel Service Award for 2009 to CSNET (the  
Computer Science Network), the research networking effort that during  
the early 1980s provided the critical bridge from the original  
research undertaken through the ARPANET to the modern Internet.

Today's award recognizes the pioneering work of the four principal  
investigators that conceived and later led the building of CSNET-- 
Peter J. Denning, David Farber, Anthony C. Hearn and Lawrence  
Landweber--and the U.S. National Science Foundation program officer  
and visionary responsible for encouraging and funding CSNET--Kent  
Curtis.

Stephen Wolff, a past recipient of the Postel Award, said, "CSNET was  
a critical link in the transition from the research-oriented ARPANET  
to today's global Internet. CSNET also helped lead the way by sharing  
technologies, fostering connections, and nurturing the worldwide  
community that provided a foundation for the global expansion of the  
Internet."

The Internet Society presented the award, including a US$20,000  
honorarium and a crystal engraved globe, during the 75th meeting of  
the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) in Stockholm, Sweden. The  
awardees have requested that the Internet Society present the  
honorarium to non-profit organizations they believe support the spirit  
of the award.

Lynn St. Amour, President and CEO of the Internet Society, said "In  
many ways, CSNET helped set the stage for the Internet that today  
reaches more than 1 billion people. CSNET's community-driven, self- 
sustaining governance structure was an early example of the model that  
helps ensure that even as today's Internet grows and evolves, it  
remains an open platform for innovation around the world."

About CSNET
CSNET began in 1981 with a five-year grant from the U.S. National  
Science Foundation (NSF).  Five years later, CSNET connected more than  
165 academic, government and industrial computer research groups  
comprised of more than 50,000 researchers, educators and students  
across the United States and around the world. It had concluded a  
seminal resource sharing agreement with the ARPANET and was self- 
governing and self-supporting. Open to all computer researchers, it  
demonstrated that researchers valued the kind of informal  
collaboration it made possible. CSNET's success and acceptance  
encouraged the NSF to undertake the NSFNET program which brought open  
networking to an even larger academic community and presaged the  
emergence of the modern Internet.

Peter Denning was head of the computer science department at Purdue  
University. His team included professor Douglas Comer, who was  
responsible for the software that ran TCP/IP over the GTE Telnet X.25  
commercial packet network.

David Farber was a professor of electrical engineering at University  
of Delaware. His team included then graduate student David Crocker,  
who was responsible for Phonenet, dial-in telephone connections to  
relay servers for email exchange.

Anthony Hearn was head of the information sciences department at RAND.  
His team included Michael O'Brien, who was responsible for the relays  
connecting CSNET and ARPANET.

Lawrence Landweber was a professor of computer science at the  
University of Wisconsin. His team included professor Marvin Solomon  
and Michael Litzkow who were responsible for the name server, a  
precursor of modern Directory Services.

At the NSF, the late Kent Curtis helped conceive the entire effort  
and, with assistance from Bill Kearn, saw it through its formative  
years. He was recognized for his pivotal role by the Computing  
Research Association's first distinguished service award in 1988.

About the Jonathan B. Postel Service Award
The Jonathan B. Postel Service Award was established by the Internet  
Society to honor individuals or organizations that, like Jon Postel,  
have made outstanding contributions in service to the data  
communications community. The award is focused on sustained and  
substantial technical contributions, service to the community, and  
leadership. With respect to leadership, the nominating committee  
places particular emphasis on candidates who have supported and  
enabled others in addition to their own specific actions. Previous  
recipients of the Postel Award include Jon himself (posthumously and  
accepted by his mother), Scott Bradner, Daniel Karrenberg, Stephen  
Wolff, Peter Kirstein, Phill Gross, Jun Murai, Bob Braden and Joyce K.  
Reynolds (jointly), Nii Quaynor, and La Fundacion Escuela  
Latinoamericana de Redes (EsLaRed). The award consists of an engraved  
crystal globe and a US$20,000 honorarium.

For more information about the Jonathan B. Postel Service Award, visit:

http://www.isoc.org/postel

About the Internet Society
The Internet Society is a non-profit organization founded in 1992 to  
provide leadership in Internet related standards, education, and  
policy. With offices in Washington, D.C., and Geneva, Switzerland, it  
is dedicated to ensuring the open development, evolution, and use of  
the Internet for the benefit of people throughout the world. More  
information is available at: http://www.isoc.org

Media Contact
Greg Wood
Internet Society
wood at isoc.org
+1-703-439-2145