This article needs additional citations for verification. (September 2024) |
Friedrich "Fritz" Leisch (31 July 1968 – 24 April 2024) was an Austrian statistician known for his pioneering contributions to the R programming language and the field of statistical computing. He was a key figure in the development of the R project and co-founder of the CRAN.
Friedrich Leisch | |
|---|---|
| Born | 31 July 1968 Vienna, Austria |
| Died | 24 April 2024 (aged 55) |
| Nationality | Austrian |
| Known for | Development of R, Sweave |
| Academic background | |
| Alma mater | Vienna University of Technology |
| Thesis | Ensemble Methods for Neural Clustering and Classification (1999) |
| Doctoral advisor | Kurt Hornik |
| Academic work | |
| Discipline | Statistics, statistical computing |
| Institutions | Vienna University of Technology Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna |
Early life and education
editBorn in Vienna, Austria, Friedrich Leisch completed his education in Technical Mathematics at the Technische Universität Wien (TU Wien). He received his doctorate in 1999 with a thesis titled Ensemble Methods for Neural Clustering and Classification, supervised by Kurt Hornik,[1] and achieved his habilitation in statistics in 2005.
Career
editLeisch's academic career began at TU Wien, moving to the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich in 2006 as a professor of statistics. He returned to Vienna in 2011 to serve as a full professor at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU), where he led the Institute of Applied Statistics and Computing.
Contributions
editLeisch was instrumental in the early stages of the R project, joining the R Core Development Team and later serving as the first Secretary General of the R Foundation for Statistical Computing. He developed the Sweave system, integrating R with LaTeX to promote reproducible research. He co-organized several seminal conferences in Vienna, namely the first three "Distributed Statistical Computing (DSC)" conferences (1999, 2001, 2003) as well as the first useR! conference in 2004.
Death
editLeisch died on 24 April 2024, at the age of 55, following a serious illness. His death was mourned across the statistical community and at BOKU University, which published a tribute expressing their loss.[2][3]
References
edit- ^ Friedrich Leisch at the Mathematics Genealogy Project. Retrieved September 30, 2024.
- ^ "Fritz Leisch 1968–2024". The R Project for Statistical Computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing. Archived from the original on 26 April 2024. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
- ^ "BOKU in Trauer" [Boku in Mourning] (in German). University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna. 25 April 2024. Archived from the original on 25 April 2024. Retrieved 25 April 2024.
External links
edit- Profile at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna
- Former homepage at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich
- The R Project for Statistical Computing