Michael Ian Shamos

Michael Ian Shamos (born April 21, 1947) is an American computer scientist, mathematician , attorney, author, and billiards historian. He is a Distinguished Career Professor in the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU), where he directs a graduate program in Artificial Intelligence and Innovation and has held a range of leadership roles in computing, digital libraries, electronic voting, and technology law. Shamos is known for his work in computational geometry, electronic voting security , digital libraries, and his extensive scholarship on the game of billiards.

Education He earned an A.B. in Physics from Princeton University in 1968 , completing a senior thesis titled Gravitational Radiation Reaction under the supervision of John A. Wheeler, followed by an M.A. in Physics from Vassar College in 1970 with a thesis entitled An Absorber Theory of Acoustical Radiation. He received an M.S. in Technology of Management from American University in 1972, and completed his graduate studies in computer science at Yale University , earning an M.S., M.Phil., and Ph.D. between 1973 and 1978, with a doctoral dissertation titled Computational Geometry. He subsequently earned a J.D., cum laude, from Duquesne University in 1981.

Academic career Shamos joined Carnegie Mellon University in 1975 as an Assistant Professor in the Departments of Computer Science and Mathematics, later also holding an appointment in Statistics, and has since held a wide range of senior academic and administrative positions at the university.

His appointments have included Distinguished Career Professor in the Language Technologies Institute and the Software and Social Systems Department of the School of Computer Science (from 2001), Principal Systems Scientist (1998–2001), Principal Lecturer (2002–2003), and Teaching Professor (from 2003). In addition, he served as Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Hong Kong from 2001 to 2021.

Electronic Voting and Security From 1980–2000 (and again after 2004), Shamos served as a statutory examiner of electronic voting systems for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and for the Attorney General of Texas, personally overseeing the certification and examination of over 120 different voting systems. He testified on voting security issues before the U.S. Congress and several state legislatures, and he authored influential technical analyses like Electronic Voting - Evaluating the Threat and Paper vs. Electronic Voting Records.

Intellectual Property Law and Technology Policy A practicing attorney admitted to the bar of Pennsylvania, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the U.S. Supreme Court, Shamos was a shareholder at the Webb Law Firm , has worked in intellectual property law and consulted on computer-related patent and copyright cases.

Billiards and Non-Academic Scholarship He is the Curator of The Billiard Archive and a Contributing Editor of the monthly Billiards Digest, in which he has published over 750 articles. His non-academic work includes extensive research, writing, and service roles in billiards organizations such as the Billiard Congress of America and the Billiard Worldcup Association. He received the Industry Service Award of the Billiard and Bowling Institute of America, 1996, for contributions to billiard history. In 2001 he was certified as a Billiard Worldcup Association official referee for three-cushion billiards. Shamos, M. I., & Vora, P. L., et al. (2004). Evaluation of Voting Systems. Communications of the ACM, 47(11).