New York, NY, October 25, 2006 - ACM (the Association for Computing Machinery) has named 49 of its members as recipients of a newly created recognition program for their contributions to both the practical and theoretical aspects of computing and information technology. The new ACM Distinguished Members, from some of the world's leading industries, research labs, and universities, have made significant advances that are having lasting effects on the lives of citizens throughout the world.

Within the corporate sector, IBM garnered nine ACM Distinguished Members; Sun Microsystems Laboratories had five Distinguished Members among its ranks; and HP Labs and Yahoo each had two Distinguished Members. Other corporate organizations with 2006 Distinguished Members include Microsoft Research, Intel, and Google, among others.

Topping the list of universities with multiple winners were the University of Minnesota and the University of California, Irvine, each with two 2006 ACM Distinguished Members. Other universities with ACM Distinguished Members include Texas at Austin, Carnegie Mellon, Maryland, Massachusetts, Rutgers, Yale, and Santa Clara, among others.

"The computing disciplines are the drivers behind much of the world's innovations," said David Patterson, past president of ACM. "These prominent scientists, engineers and professionals have made breakthroughs in computing that benefit our world everyday." Patterson, a computer scientist at the University of California, Berkeley, and founding director of the Reliable, Adaptive, and Distributed Systems (RAD) Laboratory, oversaw the launch of this advanced member recognition program as ACM's president to honor the continuing contributions of the computing community.

ACM created the Distinguished Member category, which includes scientists, engineers, and other members, to recognize the range of contributions that these computing professionals are making to everyday life. These inaugural designees have been cited for achievements that have solved problems in virtually every industry including computer security, robotics, computer graphics, mobile computing, wireless networking, and Web searching, among others.

For more information about the selection criteria and a complete list of 2006 Distinguished Members, click on http://distinguished.acm.org.

About ACM
ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery http://www.acm.org, is an educational and scientific society uniting the world's computing educators, researchers and professionals to inspire dialogue, share resources and address the field's challenges. ACM strengthens the profession's collective voice through strong leadership, promotion of the highest standards, and recognition of technical excellence. ACM supports the professional growth of its members by providing opportunities for life-long learning, career development, and professional networking.

About ACM Recognition Program
The ACM Fellows program, initiated in 1993, celebrates the exceptional contributions of the leading members in the computing field. These individuals have helped to enlighten researchers, developers, practitioners and end-users of information technology throughout the world. The ACM Distinguished Engineer, Scientist, and Membership Program, initiated in 2006, recognizes those members with at least 15 years of professional experience who have made significant accomplishments or achieved a significant impact on the computing field. The ACM Senior Member program, also initiated in 2006, includes members with at least 10 years of professional experience who have demonstrated performance that sets them apart from their peers through technical leadership, technical contributions and professional contributions. The new ACM Fellows, Distinguished Engineers, Scientists, and Members, and Senior Members join a distinguished list of colleagues to whom ACM and its members look for guidance and leadership in computing and information technology.