Collaboration and a sense of responsibility to society are essential to meaningful work in computer science, said Robert Tarjan, a renowned computer scientist and Turing Award recipient, underscoring the value of openness and integrity in tackling complex problems.
Tarjan was in Beijing for the two-week-long 2025 International Congress of Basic Science (ICBS), which concluded on Friday. The congress aimed to explore the frontiers of fundamental research. During the event, six preeminent scientists, including Tarjan, were honored with the 2025 Basic Science Lifetime Award, the highest distinction in fundamental science, recognizing a scientist's enduring impact on the field.
In an exclusive interview released by China Media Group (CMG) on Friday, Tarjan reflected on the lessons he's gained through both learning and teaching. He shared the core principles he hopes his students will carry forward -- a commitment to clarity, rigor, and intellectual curiosity.
"Maintain high standards. Look on both sides of a problem. Read skeptically. The best problems are the ones you discover for yourself. So -- elegance: use as few words as possible, make things as simple as possible, explore the design space. Don't settle for the first solution, but seek this idea -- this hard-to-define idea -- of elegance, simple and deep," he said.
A professor at Princeton University, Tarjan also reflected on the responsibility that comes with intellectual talent and the importance of collaboration in scientific work. He emphasized the value of openness, teamwork, and shared discovery, especially in the field of computer science.
"I think if you have a brain, you owe it to humanity to use it in constructive and useful ways for society. I think that's important. And I think collaboration also: don't be selfish about your ideas; you will gain much more if you're open and sharing than if you try to hold back and do everything yourself. That's a beautiful thing about computer science -- I find it much more pleasant to collaborate with people, to work on problems together. The human process is pleasant, as well as solving the problem," he said.
Embracing collaboration in computer science leads to better society: Turing award laureate
