Bernard M. Oliver (May 17, 1916 – November 23, 1995),^[1] also known as Barney Oliver, was a scientist who made contributions in many fields, including radar, television, and computers.^[2] He was the founder and director of Hewlett-Packard (HP) laboratories until his retirement in 1981. He is also a recognized pioneer in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI).^[3][4] Oliver was president of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers in 1965.^[5] In 1986, Oliver was a National Medal of Science recipient for Engineering Science and on February 11, 2004 it was announced that Oliver had been inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.

Oliver was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1973, received the National Medal of Science in 1986, and was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2004. The asteroid (2177) Oliver is named after him.^[6]

Early years

Worked at Bell Labs.

HP Labs

Founded HP Labs and worked there four decades.

Scientific contributions

• Developed pulse-code modulation (PCM) with John R. Pierce and Claude Shannon
• Headed the HP calculators development team

Chairs, foundations, and awards

• In 2004 he was inducted into The National Inventors Hall of Fame.^[7]
• In 1997 the SETI Institute established a newly endowed position, the Bernard M. Oliver Chair.^[8]
• Bernard Oliver Memorial Fund^[9]
• National Medal of Science, List of National Medal of Science winners, Engineering 1986
• Oliver Observing Station, observatory of the Monterey Institute for Research in Astronomy
• IEEE Lamme Medal (1977)