VOL. 23, NO. 22	APRIL 24, 1998

inton G. Cerf, senior vice president of Internet architecture and engineering at MCI Communications Corp., on Apr. 15 received the $100,000 Marconi International Fellowship, awarded by the Guglielmo Marconi International Fellowship Foundation located at Columbia.

  Cerf, architect with Robert E. Kahn of the structure and the basic protocols that have become the language of the Internet, was recognized “for the technical achievements and ambassadorial leadership that have been such major factors in the creation and evolution of the Internet.” The citation was presented by President George Rupp on the occasion of the Foundation’s move to the University.

  Cerf is responsible for the development of MCI’s Internet network, one of the world’s largest and fastest Internet backbones. He oversees the design and development of the network architecture that will enable the company to deliver a combination of data, information, voice and video to businesses and consumers.

  In the next 25 years, he believes, those businesses and consumers will use intelligent agents—new kinds of software—that will roam the web and automatically perform vital but often mundane tasks. Car buyers will automatically execute an insurance policy when they purchase a new car. Financial programs will tell consumers when interest rates have fallen to a point at which refinancing a home is a good idea. Cerf also sees busy executives using the Internet to operate everyday appliances, like refrigerators, dishwashers and ovens.

  At an awards banquet in Low Rotunda, Cerf was introduced by Martin Meyerson, President Emeritus and University Professor at the University of Pennsylvania and chairman of the board of the Marconi Foundation.

  The Marconi Fellowship, considered the premier award in communications science, technology and related endeavors, was established in 1974 by Marconi’s daughter, Gioia Marconi Braga, to mark the centennial of the inventor’s birth. After her death in 1996, she was succeeded as chairman by Meyerson. The Foundation, which administers the award, was incorporated under New York State law in November 1996. Originally at the Aspen Institute and then at Polytechnic University, it is now located at the Fu Foundation School of Engineering and Applied Science, which is led by Zvi Galil, dean of engineering and Schapiro Professor.