Dave Parnas

Date of Birth: February 10, 1941

Zodiac Sign: Aquarius

Biography

David Lorge Parnas, commonly known as Dave Parnas, is a distinguished American-Canadian computer scientist renowned for his pioneering contributions to software engineering. Born in the mid-20th century, Parnas became a pivotal figure in the development of software design principles, particularly in the realm of modular programming. His groundbreaking work on software modularization and information hiding has had a profound impact on the way complex systems are designed and managed. Parnas earned his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University in 1967, where he later served as a faculty member. Throughout his career, he held various academic positions, including at prestigious institutions such as the University of North Carolina, the Technische Universität Darmstadt, and McMaster University in Canada, where he is Professor Emeritus. One of his most notable contributions is his rigorous approach to software documentation and the establishment of clear interfaces between software components. His work laid the foundation for much of modern software engineering practices, emphasizing the importance of well-defined module interfaces to ensure system reliability and maintainability. Parnas has received numerous accolades for his work, including the IEEE Computer Society’s Harlan D. Mills Award and election to the Royal Society of Canada. His influence extends beyond academia into industrial applications, where his principles have been adopted to improve the quality and dependability of software systems in various sectors.

5 Interesting Facts about Dave Parnas

1. Dave Parnas was one of the first to advocate for the use of modularization in software design, which helps manage complexity and improve system maintainability.

2. He introduced the concept of “information hiding” as a key design principle, which dictates that modules should only expose what is necessary and hide their internal workings.

3. Parnas was a strong critic of the U.S. Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI), also known as “Star Wars,” arguing that the software required for such a system would be impossible to develop reliably.

4. He has published over 200 papers and reports, significantly contributing to the literature in software engineering and computer science.

5. Dave Parnas is a Fellow of both the ACM (Association for Computing Machinery) and the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers).

5 Most Interesting Quotes from Dave Parnas

1. “The connections between modules are the assumptions which the modules make about each other.”

2. “Software engineering is the multi-person development of multi-version programs.”

3. “A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”

4. “In most successful software projects, the most important functions are designed first.”

5. “The essence of engineering is to find the best match between expected performance and acceptable risk.”

Highest Net Worth Achieved

Dave Parnas’s net worth is not publicly documented, as he is primarily known for his academic and scientific contributions rather than personal financial achievements.