Jaap A. Zonneveld
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Jacob Anton "Jaap" Zonneveld (2 June 1924 – 22 December 2016) was a Dutch programmer who, with Edsger W. Dijkstra, wrote the first ALGOL 60 compiler.[1]
Zonneveld's interest in the practical application of mathematics grew in World War II in order to be able to predict the place where a grenade will land (ballistics). In 1948 he obtained his bachelor's degree in mathematics and physics; in 1954 he received a doctorate in numerical mathematics, and in 1964 a promotion with the thesis "Automatic Numerical Integration".[2]
Work environment
Zonneveld worked from 1948 at the CWI (later the Center for Mathematics and Computer Science) in Amsterdam. As a scientific assistant, he was responsible for converting calculation assignments into formulas that were then initially performed by people on a desk calculator.
In 1965, he headed a software research group at Philips' NatLab.
He retired in 1984.