Frank Pfenning is a professor of computer science and a part-time professor in philosophy. He was the leader of the Computer Science Department at Carnegie Mellon University from 2013 to 2018.

Education and career

Pfenning was born in Rüsselsheim, Germany, and studied math and computer science at Technische Universität Darmstadt in Germany. He went to Carnegie Mellon University after receiving a Fulbright Scholarship and later became a professor in Carnegie Mellon's Computer Science Department.

His research includes work in programming languages, logic and type theory, logical frameworks, automated deduction, and trustworthy computing. He is one of the main creators of the Twelf system. He also developed Carnegie Mellon's beginner-level imperative programming course for college students and created the C0 programming language used in this course.

Honors and awards

In 2015, he was honored as a Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery for his work on the basic rules of computer programs that prove math statements automatically and ways to organize code in programming languages. In 2016, he won the LICS Test of Time Award for the paper titled "A Linear Logical Framework," which he wrote with Iliano Cervesato.

Personal life

Pfenning is a skilled squash player, ranked among the top five players on the university's squash ladder.

Pfenning has also been in an experimental film with Sharon Needles.