Jacob T. Schwartz
Also known as Jack Schwartz
Jacob Schwartz was a mathematician and computer scientist whose work included parallel computing, programming languages, and artificial intelligence. He studied at City College of New York and Yale, then joined New York University as an associate professor in 1957 and became a full professor in 1958. At NYU he founded the computer science department, and at Courant he started SETL, a high-level language based on finite sets. He was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1976, directed a DARPA information science office, and published on neuroscience and AI in 1988. He died in 2009 while researching molecular biology and logic.
- Works
- 223
- Citations
- 21,409
- h-index
- 42
Publication numbers from OpenAlex, as of 15 October 2026.
Timeline
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By 1952
From City College to Yale
He studies at City College of New York and Yale, completing a PhD at Yale under Nelson Dunford in 1952.
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1957–1958
Professorships at NYU
He joins New York University as an associate professor in 1957 and becomes a full professor in 1958.
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1966
Large parallel computers
He publishes “Large parallel computers” in the Journal of the ACM in 1966.
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By 1969
Founding computer science at NYU
By 1969, he has founded NYU’s computer science department and serves as its chair.
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1970s
The SETL language
At Courant, he starts SETL around 1970, a high-level programming language based on finite sets.
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1976
National Academy election
He is elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1976.
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1987–1989
Directing DARPA and writing on AI
He directs DARPA’s Information Science and Technology Office from 1987 to 1989. In 1988, he publishes The New Connectionism: Developing Relationships between Neuroscience and Artificial Intelligence.
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2009
Molecular biology research
He dies in 2009 while still researching molecular biology and logic.
Sources and credits
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