Mark E. Dean
Born in 1957, computer scientist and engineer Mark Dean is credited with helping develop several landmark technologies, including the color PC monitor, the Industry Standard Architecture system bus and the first gigahertz chip.
Dean worked for IBM, where he led the team that designed the ISA bus—the hardware interface that allows multiple devices like printers, modems, and keyboards to be plugged into a computer. This innovation helped pave the way for the personal computer’s use in office and business settings.
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He holds three of the company’s original nine patents. He also invented the Industry Standard Architecture system bus with engineer Dennis Moeller, allowing for computer plug-ins such as disk drives and printers.
Dean was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 1997. He’s currently a computer science professor at the University of Tennessee.
