LIACS prof. Grzegorz Rozenberg is one of the world leaders in research on Theoretical Computer Science and Natural Computing. He is often called the guru of Natural Computing.

Numerous publications

Prof. Grzegorz Rozenberg was born in Poland, where he obtained his Master’s degree in computer science and electronics and his Ph.D. degree in mathematics. He is working at Leiden University since 1979. After his retirement in 2007, he has proceeded with his research. Rozenberg has published over 500 papers, 6 books and he (co-)edited over 100 books. He  supervised  numerous  Ph.D.  students,   many  of  whom  have  become  known scientists.

Natural computing as a new discipline

Already in the 1970s, Rozenberg started promoting natural computing as a coherent scientific discipline. He gave this area its name and defined its scope. He played a central role in the development of theoretical computer science in Europe. His research is very broad in scope and it is a prime example of interdisciplinary research.

Six Honorary Doctorates

His remarkable performances have been recognised by the scientific community, as demonstrated by the fact that Rozenberg has received six Honorary Doctorates from all over Europe: the University of Turku (Finland), the Technical University of Berlin (Germany), the University of Bologna (Italy), the Swedish Åbo Akademi University in Turku (Finland), the Warsaw University of Technology (Poland) an the University of Bucharest (Romania).

Lifetime achievement award

In July 2016, Rozenberg received a lifetime achievement award from Developments in Language Theory (DLT), the world leading conference on automata and language theory, a basic area in theoretical computer science. Prof. Rozenberg is one of the two initiators of this scientific meeting. ‘Professor Rozenberg was chosen – with great enthusiasm – to be the winner of the first DLT award’, says the steering committee chair J. Karhumäki. ‘He has been among the most outstanding researchers of the area, creating several new directions for theoretical research and solving many fundamental problems in his striking articles.’

Jubilee symposium

On 14 March 2017, Rozenberg will celebrate his 75th birthday. On this occasion, the University of Turku, the Swedish Åbo Akademi in Turku, and the renowned international conference Computability in Europe are organising the symposium  Magic in Science. It will be held on 17 June 2017 in Turku, Finland. Reason for this beautiful title is that, outside his scientific career, Rozenberg is a performing magician. The organisers: 'His very impressive numerous scientific results are somehow sprinkled with a touch of magic.’ Furthermore, he is an expert on the work of the famous Dutch painter Hiëronymus Bosch.

Symposium Facets

On December 15 2017, the Leiden Institute of Advanced Computer Science (LIACS) together with the Institute of Biology Leiden (IBL) organised the symposium 'Many Facets of Computation: An Insight in Current Trends' celebrating the lifetime achievements of Rozenberg on the occasion of his 75th birthday. The program consisted of scientific contributions from prominent researchers from LIACS and IBL discussing some current trends in Informatics and Natural Computing.

During the symposium FACTES Rozenberg was appointed Knight in the Order of the Netherlands Lion. He received this Dutch order of knighthood for his exceptional achievements for science in general and Theoretical Computer Science in particular. At institute, faculty and university level he has distinguished himself by the high standard of scientific research and contributed to the visibility of computer science in Leiden and therefore that of Leiden University in the national and international scientific world.