Michalis Dertouzos

Early life Dertouzos was born in Athens, Greece. His father was an admiral in the Greek navy and the young Dertouzos often accompanied him aboard destroyers and submarines. This experience cultivated his interest in technology so that he learned Morse code, shipboard machinery, and mathematics at an early age. When he was 16, he came across Claude Shannon's work on information theory and MIT's attempt to build a mechanical mouse robot; these were said to have driven him to study in the university. Dertouzos completed his bachelor's and master's degrees at the University of Arkansas in 1957 and 1959. He earned his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from MIT in 1964.

Career After graduating, he immediately joined the faculty of MIT, where he stayed for the rest of his career.

In 1968, he co-founded Computek, Inc., a manufacturer of graphics and intelligent terminals, with Marvin C. Lewis and Dr. Huber Graham.

He died on August 27 2001 at Massachusetts General Hospital at the age of 64. He is buried at the First Cemetery of Athens.