Mad Scientist of Honor: Bruce Schneier

DucKon's Mad Scientist Guest of Honor this year is Bruce Schneier: fan, traveler, writer, reviewer, computer expert, manager and Knower of Many Secret Things.

I met him in the early 80's, hitting conventions and hanging out with other Rochester (New York) fans. He was just finishing his BS in Physics (I got mine just a few years before) and we stayed in touch after he moved to the Washington DC area to help Our Government with their communication needs. Bruce has always been an experienced and enthusiastic traveler, whether wedging a side journey onto a job-related trip or roughing it with other fans on the road. His frequent and chatty travelogues, which he would photocopy and distribute to anyone interested, really underscored what a wonderful and diverse place this world is.

When he moved to the Chicago area, he established a reputation as an article writer and computer product reviewer, providing columns for highly respected magazines such as Dr. Dobbs. He also demonstrated once and for all that he could throw one hell of a house party. The travelogues kept coming, and you could often see him helping out here and there at the various cons.

By the late 80's, Bruce had become best known as a cryptographer and a computer systems security guru. One of his earlier books, Applied Cryptography, has become the seminal book in the field, and has sold more than 130,000 copies. His most recent work, Secrets and Lies: Digital Security in a Networked World, is enjoyable and informative whether you're a highly trained expert in the field or just a concerned businessman. Published just this last October, it's sold more than 70,000 copies. His company, Counterpane Systems, established itself as a top-flight computer security consulting firm and has now moved forward into providing real-time computer system monitoring and response.

His incredible depth of knowledge in the field, coupled with an ability to explain these arcane complexities to a wide range of people, has put him in high demand as a keynote speaker, lecturer and consultant. Despite all this, he still manages to keep in touch with his friends and get to a number of conventions.

In the mid 90's Bruce became best friends with Minneapolis fan Karen Cooper. Their Restaurant Guide for Minicon 34 was so jam packed with fannish stories and food related anecdotes (as well as an incredibly comprehensive listing of area restaurants) that it made the final Hugo ballot last year for Best Related Work.

Here's a guy with stories: places he's been, people he's met, things he's done and things he's doing. So save time for that program item, and save a seat in the Con Suite, 'cause while he may seem a little quiet to a casual observer, when it's Mad Scientists under discussion, it's the quiet ones you most want to hear from.

Alice Bentley

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