5 ms·

RIP Jim Gray - Closure in Disappearance of Computer Scientist

136 points by yarapavan 15y ago

carlhu 15y ago
I was at Microsoft Research and on the SQL Server Transaction Engine Team when he was there. He was a generous and inspiring leader and teacher. RIP.
monk_the_dog 15y ago
There's an inspiring article in The Communications of the AMC on the group of people who came together to help search for Jim Gray when he disappeared: http://cacm.acm.org/magazines/2011/7/109892-searching-for-jim-gray/fulltext http://cacm.acm.org/magazines/2011/7/109892-searching-for-ji...
drallison 15y ago
Jim was a friend. I guess this is closure of a sort, but he is still missed.
- corin_ 15y ago
  I feel bad for asking, but I hope you won't mind - is this actually closure of any sort other than legal? This legal declaration doesn't mean you have any more or less chance of seeing your friend again than you had a week ago, or a month ago. Belated condolences to you and others who knew Jim.
  - drallison 15y ago
    It really is only legal closure. We do not know what happened to him. There are not clues, no debris, and no where else to look. <sigh> We did a short memorial at Stanford which can be viewed. See http://ee380.stanford.edu/permlinks/Grey.html http://ee380.stanford.edu/permlinks/Grey.html for abstract and link to the video.
fogus 15y ago
Dr. Gray wrote "Transaction Processing"[1] that has proven indispensable in my career and a generally great book. I didn't know the man, but he influenced me deeply from afar. RIP. [1]: http://www.amazon.com/Transaction-Processing-Concepts-Techniques-Management/dp/1558601902 http://www.amazon.com/Transaction-Processing-Concepts-Techni...
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
selectnull 15y ago
There is a great video, part of Behind the Code series at Channel 9, interview with Jim Gray from 2006. http://channel9.msdn.com/Shows/Behind+The+Code/Conversation-with-scientist-engineer-and-database-legend-Jim-Gray http://channel9.msdn.com/Shows/Behind+The+Code/Conversation-...
cek 15y ago
I am blessed with how much I learned, and am still learning from Jim Gray. I <3 storage because of him. RIP.
SagelyGuru 15y ago
Lots more bizarre deaths of computer scientists. Could this be related? http://www.whale.to/b/sdi.html http://www.whale.to/b/sdi.html
- kahirsch 15y ago
  No.
- pjscott 15y ago
  Deaths happen often enough that you'd expect unusual ones to co-occur once in a while. It's the macabre cousin of the Birthday Paradox: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday_problem http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday_problem
6ren 15y ago
A Conversation with Jim Gray http://queue.acm.org/detail.cfm?id=864078 http://queue.acm.org/detail.cfm?id=864078
6ren 15y ago
A Conversation with Jim Gray http://queue.acm.org/detail.cfm?id=864078 http://queue.acm.org/detail.cfm?id=864078
jroseattle 15y ago
Dr. Gray was someone who worked at the core, conceptual level of computer science and brought it to application-level form. He gave a speech at a conference I attended, and I recall him so naturally gifted and the ease with which he understood technology. He was just on a higher plane than most everyone else. RIP, Dr. Gray. And best wishes to his family and friends for peace and closure.

136 points by yarapavan 15y ago

I was at Microsoft Research and on the SQL Server Transaction Engine Team when he was there. He was a generous and inspiring leader and teacher. RIP.

monk_the_dog 15y ago

There's an inspiring article in The Communications of the AMC on the group of people who came together to help search for Jim Gray when he disappeared: http://cacm.acm.org/magazines/2011/7/109892-searching-for-jim-gray/fulltext http://cacm.acm.org/magazines/2011/7/109892-searching-for-ji...

drallison 15y ago

Jim was a friend. I guess this is closure of a sort, but he is still missed.

corin_ 15y ago
I feel bad for asking, but I hope you won't mind - is this actually closure of any sort other than legal? This legal declaration doesn't mean you have any more or less chance of seeing your friend again than you had a week ago, or a month ago. Belated condolences to you and others who knew Jim.
- drallison 15y ago
  It really is only legal closure. We do not know what happened to him. There are not clues, no debris, and no where else to look. <sigh> We did a short memorial at Stanford which can be viewed. See http://ee380.stanford.edu/permlinks/Grey.html http://ee380.stanford.edu/permlinks/Grey.html for abstract and link to the video.

fogus 15y ago

Dr. Gray wrote "Transaction Processing"[1] that has proven indispensable in my career and a generally great book. I didn't know the man, but he influenced me deeply from afar. RIP. [1]: http://www.amazon.com/Transaction-Processing-Concepts-Techniques-Management/dp/1558601902 http://www.amazon.com/Transaction-Processing-Concepts-Techni...

deleted 15y ago
[deleted]

selectnull 15y ago

There is a great video, part of Behind the Code series at Channel 9, interview with Jim Gray from 2006. http://channel9.msdn.com/Shows/Behind+The+Code/Conversation-with-scientist-engineer-and-database-legend-Jim-Gray http://channel9.msdn.com/Shows/Behind+The+Code/Conversation-...

cek 15y ago

I am blessed with how much I learned, and am still learning from Jim Gray. I <3 storage because of him. RIP.

SagelyGuru 15y ago

Lots more bizarre deaths of computer scientists. Could this be related? http://www.whale.to/b/sdi.html http://www.whale.to/b/sdi.html

kahirsch 15y ago
No.
pjscott 15y ago
Deaths happen often enough that you'd expect unusual ones to co-occur once in a while. It's the macabre cousin of the Birthday Paradox: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday_problem http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday_problem

6ren 15y ago

A Conversation with Jim Gray http://queue.acm.org/detail.cfm?id=864078 http://queue.acm.org/detail.cfm?id=864078

6ren 15y ago

A Conversation with Jim Gray http://queue.acm.org/detail.cfm?id=864078 http://queue.acm.org/detail.cfm?id=864078

jroseattle 15y ago

Dr. Gray was someone who worked at the core, conceptual level of computer science and brought it to application-level form. He gave a speech at a conference I attended, and I recall him so naturally gifted and the ease with which he understood technology. He was just on a higher plane than most everyone else. RIP, Dr. Gray. And best wishes to his family and friends for peace and closure.