Jonathan Schaeffer

Jonathan Schaeffer is a Professor of Computing Science at the University of Alberta (Edmonton, Alberta, Canada). His research area is artificial intelligence, and he is best known for using games to demonstrate his research. In 1994 his checkers-playing program Chinook became the first computer program to win a human world championship in any game. This feat is recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records. He has also worked on world-class chess and poker programs, as well as developing AI technology for commercial games companies. He is a founder of Onlea (onlea.org) which develops engaging on-line learning experiences.

With his new book Toward No Earthly Pole, Jonathan combines his hobby (reading Polar exploration literature) with his love for historical fiction.