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Nathan Myhrvold

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Nathan Paul Myhrvold
Nathan Myhrvold in 2016
Born(1959-08-03)August 3, 1959(age 65)
Seattle, Washington
Alma materUCLA(B.S., M.S.)
Princeton University(M.S., Ph.D.)
SpouseRosemarie Havranek
Scientific career
InstitutionsIntellectual Ventures,University of Cambridge,Microsoft Research
Websitewww.nathanmyhrvold.com

Nathan Paul Myhrvold(born August 3, 1959), formerlyChief Technology Officerat Microsoft, is co-founder ofIntellectual Venturesand the principal author ofModernist Cuisineand its successor books.

Early life and education

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Myhrvold was born on August 3, 1959, inSeattle, Washington,toNorwegian Americanparents. He was raised inSanta Monica, California,[1]where he attendedMirman School[2]andSanta Monica High School,graduating in 1974,[3]and began college at age 14.[4]Transferring fromSanta Monica College,he studiedmathematics(B.Sc.), andgeophysicsandspace physics(Master's) atUCLA.[5]He was awarded aHertz FoundationFellowship for graduate study and studied atPrinceton University,where he earned amaster's degreeinmathematical economicsand completed a Ph.D. in applied mathematics after completing a doctoral dissertation titled "Vistas in curved space-time quantum field theory" under the supervision ofMalcolm Perry.[6]For one year, he held a postdoctoral fellowship at theUniversity of Cambridgeworking underStephen Hawking.

Career

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Early career

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Myhrvold left Cambridge to co-found a computer startup inOakland, California.The company, Dynamical Systems Research Inc. (DSR), sought to produce Mondrian, a clone ofIBM'sTopViewmultitaskingenvironment for DOS. Myhrvold served as Dynamical Systems Research's president.[1]Microsoft purchased Dynamical Systems Research in 1986 for $1.5M in stock.[7]Myhrvold worked atMicrosoftfor 13 years in a variety of executive positions, culminating in his appointment as the company's first chief technology officer in 1996.[8]At Microsoft he foundedMicrosoft Researchin 1991.[9]

Intellectual Ventures

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Main article:Intellectual Ventures

After Microsoft, in 2000 Myhrvold co-founded Intellectual Ventures,[10]a patent portfolio developer and broker in the areas of technology and energy, which has acquired over 30,000 patents.[11]Intellectual Ventures takes part in the market for inventions and patents, buying patents from companies and inventors under the assumption the patents will be more valuable in the future. Intellectual Ventures also files patents through the work of a team of on-site inventors. Startup companies spun out of Intellectual Ventures, includingTerraPower,Kymeta,Echodyne, Modern Electron, Lumotive, Evolv Technology, and Pivotal Commware, have developed commercial products from Intellectual Ventures' inventions. Through its Global Good unit, which Myhrvold founded in collaboration with Bill Gates, Intellectual Ventures has also invented and produced commercial products, such as improved vaccine coolers and milking cans, aimed at low-income markets in Africa and Asia.[12]However, in most cases, Intellectual Ventures' inventions are limited to the descriptions provided in their patents, which are bundled into portfolios for licensing.

Myhrvold has described his goal for Intellectual Ventures as helping to create a market for patent-backed securities.[13]The company's business practices have caused controversy, however, with some deprecating the firm as apatent troll,accusing the company of stifling innovation by buying patents and then forcing inventors to license their ideas by means of litigation.[14][15]Myhrvold has publicly defended his firm's practices, arguing that they foster innovation by serving as a marketplace for intellectual property. He has noted that many of the largest companies inSilicon Valley,includingGoogle,Apple,andFacebook,have also bought large patent portfolios and used litigation to protect them, but he has criticized them as focusing too much on creating "tools or toys for rich people."[16]Walt Mossberginterviewed Myhrvold about Intellectual Ventures' role as a "patent troll" during the 10th annualAll Things Digitalconference.[17]

According toThe New York Times,Intellectual Ventures at one point controlled nearly 70,000 intellectual property assets (patents and patents pending) that it has used to generate approximately $3 billion in revenues, primarily in the form of license fees from large corporations. The company responds that it has returned more than $500 million to individual inventors and most of the remaining revenues to its investors.[18]

Nuclear power

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Myhrvold is vice chairman ofTerraPower,a spin-out of Intellectual Ventures that is developing a new kind ofnuclear reactor,known as atraveling-wave reactor,that is designed to be safer, cheaper, and cleaner than current nuclear power plants. In 2020, the company launched a joint venture withGE Hitachi Nuclear Energyto build and operate a prototype reactor of this kind that combines a molten-sodium reactor with amolten salt energy storagesystem.[19]

Science

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In addition to his business activities, Myhrvold is a working scientist who has published original, peer-reviewed research in the fields of paleobiology,[20]climate science,[21]and astronomy.[22]A prize-winning nature and wildlife photographer, he has also been involved with paleontological research on expeditions with theMuseum of the Rockies.His work has appeared in scientific journals includingScience,[23]Nature,[24]Paleobiology,[25]PLOS One,[26]and thePhysical Review,[27]as well as inFortune,Time,Scientific American,[28][29]National Geographic Traveler,andSlate.He andPeter RinearsonhelpedBill GateswriteThe Road Ahead,a book about the future that reached No. 1 on the New York Times bestseller list in 1995 and 1996. Myhrvold has contributed $1 million to the nonprofitSETIInstitute in Mountain View, CA, for the development of theAllen Telescope Array,which was envisioned to be the most powerful instrument for SETI.[30]

After theScience Museumin London successfully built the computing section ofCharles Babbage'sDifference Engine#2 in 1991, Myhrvold funded the construction of the output section, which performs bothprintingandstereotypingof calculated results. He also commissioned the construction of a second complete Difference Engine #2 for himself, which was on display at theComputer History MuseuminMountain View, California,from May 10, 2008, to January 31, 2016, and currently resides in the Intellectual Ventures Laboratory.[31][32][33][34][35]

In research presented at scientific conferences and published in the astronomy journalIcarus,Myhrvold has been a vocal critic of procedures and results about asteroid diameters published by theNEOWISEteam.[22][36][37][38][39]A preprint of his work on the subject[40]received wide press coverage[41][42][43]prompting NASA to release a public statement defending their published research and pointing out the lack of peer review and methodological errors in Myhrvold's preprint.[44]

Cooking

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Myhrvold cooking a meal

While working as chief technology officer at Microsoft, Myhrvold took a leave to earn a culinary diploma fromÉcole de Cuisine La Varennein France.[16]Myhrvold's early culinary training was as an observer and unpaid apprentice atRover's,one ofSeattle'sleading restaurants, with ChefThierry Rautureau.[45]Myhrvold is the principal author of a culinary text entitledModernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking,[46]released in March 2011, on the application of scientific research principles and new techniques and technology to cooking.[47]That book, which earned aJames Beard Foundation Awardfor "cookbook of the year" in 2012, was followed by the booksModernist Cuisine at Home,[48]The Photography of Modernist Cuisine,[49]Modernist Bread,[50]andModernist Pizza,[51]all self-published by Myhrvold and with him as lead author. Myhrvold was part of a team that won first place at the world barbecue championships in Memphis.[16]He has appeared as a guest judge onTop Chef.

Advocacy

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In interviews with CNN,SuperFreakonomicsauthor Stephen Dubner, andScientific American,Myhrvold has discussed ways to reverse some of the effects ofglobal warming/climate changeby usinggeoengineering.[52]Myhrvold and other inventors working with Intellectual Ventures have proposed several approaches, including one that would use hoses, suspended fromheliumballoons 25 kilometers (16 mi) above theEarthat high latitudes, to emitsulfur dioxide,which is known to scatter light.[53][54][55]

Relationship with Jeffrey Epstein

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Myhrvold was one of the acquaintances of the convicted sex offenderJeffrey Epsteinand attended dinner at his house.[56]According to an anonymous source, Myhrvold was one of the people who introduced Epstein to Bill Gates.[57]According toVanity FairwriterGabriel Sherman,Epstein allegedly visited Myhrvold's investment company Intellectual Ventures and brought young girls with him. According to Epstein's lawyerAlan Dershowitz,Myhrvold allegedly had sex with minors who, according to Dershowitz, then mistook Myhrvold for Dershowitz. Myhrvold denied being involved in Epstein's criminal activities or ever having known about them. His spokesperson stated that he had only socialized with Epstein, but had not had any business relations with him.[58]

Affiliations and awards

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Myhrvold received theJames Beard Foundation Awardfor cookbook of the year in 2012[59]and an honorary degree fromThe Culinary Institute of Americain 2013[60]for his bookModernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking.His bookModernist Breadreceived a James Beard Foundation book award in 2018.[61]In 2010, Myhrvold was named byForeign Policymagazine to its list of top 100 global thinkers.[62]He was selected as the keynote speaker for the UCLA College commencement ceremonies on Friday, June 12, 2015[63]and received the Earth, Planetary and Space Sciences Luminary Award from the UCLA Division of Physical Sciences in 2021.[64]In 2013, Myhrvold was a judge for the inauguralQueen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering.Princeton University awarded him the James Madison Medal in 2005.[65]He received the Golden Plate Award of theAmerican Academy of Achievementin 1996.[66]

Myhrvold endorsed Democratic candidateHillary Clintonin the 2016 U.S. presidential election.[67]

Personal life

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Myhrvold is married to Rosemarie Havranek, whom he met while studying at Princeton. They have twin sons, Conor and Cameron A. Myhrvold.[68][69]Cameron heads a lab researchingCRISPR-based technologies for studyingRNAas an assistant professor of molecular biology atPrinceton University.[70]

Nathan Myhrvold has a younger brother, Cameron.[1]Myhrvold prefers to use aDvorak keyboard.[71]

References

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  1. ^abcAuletta, Ken (May 4, 1997)."The Microsoft Provocateur".The New Yorker.RetrievedJuly 15,2019.
  2. ^"Where Bright Minds Can Shine",Elaine Woo,Los Angeles Times,November 22, 2000
  3. ^"Honored Vikings".Hall of Fame - Samohi Alumni Association.
  4. ^Oversight TestimonyArchivedFebruary 10, 2007, at theWayback Machine“Patent Quality and Improvement” before the Subcommittee on the Courts, the Internet and Intellectual Property,House Committee on the Judiciary,United States Congress,April 28, 2005
  5. ^Renaud, Jean-Paul."Renowned entrepreneur, UCLA alumnus Nathan Myhrvold to deliver 2015 College Commencement address".UCLA Newsroom.University of California, Los Angeles.RetrievedMarch 31,2023.
  6. ^Myhrvold, Nathan Paul (1983).Vistas in curved space-time quantum field theory.
  7. ^Roy A. Allan (October 1, 2001).A History of the Personal Computer: The People and the Technology.Allan.
  8. ^"Microsoft Realigns Product Groups, Creates Chief Technology Officer; Enhances Focus on Internet, Interactive Media and Future Technologies".Microsoft Press Release.October 29, 1996.RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  9. ^"Microsoft Chief Technology Officer Nathan Myhrvold Takes Leave of Absence".Press Release(Press release). Microsoft. June 1, 1999.RetrievedJanuary 5,2018.
  10. ^"Myhrvold of Intellectual Ventures"(PDF).RetrievedSeptember 15,2008.Wall Street Journal, September 15, 2008
  11. ^Harris, Mark (May 16, 2010)."Green Pioneers: Godfather of nutty inventions".The Times.London. Archived fromthe originalon May 22, 2010.RetrievedJune 2,2010.Mark Harris, The Sunday Times, May 16, 2010
  12. ^Cheney, Catherine (November 22, 2016)."With help from Bill Gates, this lab is reinventing its approach to invention".Devex.RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  13. ^Myhrvold, Nathan (March 16, 2010)."The Big Idea: Funding Eureka!".Harvard Business Review.Cambridge.RetrievedOctober 21,2012.Nathan Myhrvold, Intellectual Ventures, March 2010
  14. ^"This American Life: When Patents Attack".July 24, 2011.RetrievedJuly 25,2011.Ira Glass,NPR,July 24, 2011
  15. ^Baskin, Morgan (September 16, 2018)."'The Ultimate Patent Troll'".No. Aug/Sep 2017. Pacific Standard.RetrievedMarch 31,2023.
  16. ^abcRenton, Alex (January 26, 2015)."Nathan Myhrvold, myth buster".1843 (The Economist).RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  17. ^Murph, Darren (May 30, 2012)."Intellectual Ventures' Nathan Myhrvold defends patent trolling, calls tech industry immature".Engadget.RetrievedMarch 31,2023.
  18. ^Wyatt, Edward (July 16, 2013)."Inventive, at Least in Court".The New York Times.ISSN0362-4331.RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  19. ^Wald, Matt (November 3, 2020)."With Natrium, Nuclear Can Pair Perfectly with Energy Storage and Renewables".NEI.org.RetrievedJuly 10,2021.
  20. ^Myhrvold, Nathan P. (December 16, 2013)."Revisiting the Estimation of Dinosaur Growth Rates".PLOS ONE.8(12): e81917.Bibcode:2013PLoSO...881917M.doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0081917.ISSN1932-6203.PMC3864909.PMID24358133.
  21. ^Caldeira, K.; Myhrvold, N. P. (2013)."Projections of the pace of warming following an abrupt increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration".Environmental Research Letters.8(3): 034039.Bibcode:2013ERL.....8c4039C.doi:10.1088/1748-9326/8/3/034039.ISSN1748-9326.
  22. ^abMyhrvold, Nathan (2018). "Asteroid thermal modeling in the presence of reflected sunlight".Icarus.303:91–113.arXiv:1605.06490.Bibcode:2018Icar..303...91M.doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2017.12.024.S2CID118511665.
  23. ^Myhrvold, N.(1998). "ESSAYS ON SCIENCE AND SOCIETY: Supporting Science".Science.282(5389): 621–622.Bibcode:1998Sci...282..621M.doi:10.1126/science.282.5389.621.S2CID153642361.
  24. ^Barsbold, R.; Currie, P. J.;Myhrvold, N. P.;Osmólska, H.; Tsogtbaatar, K.; Watabe, M. (2000). "A pygostyle from a non-avian theropod".Nature.403(6766): 155–156.Bibcode:2000Natur.403..155B.doi:10.1038/35003103.PMID10646588.S2CID2329675.
  25. ^Currie, Philip; Myhrvold, Nathan (1997)."Supersonic sauropods? Tail dynamics in the diplodocids".Paleobiology.23(4): 393–409.Bibcode:1997Pbio...23..393M.doi:10.1017/S0094837300019801.S2CID83696153.
  26. ^Horner, J. R.; Goodwin, M. B.;Myhrvold, N.(2011). Roopnarine, Peter (ed.)."Dinosaur Census Reveals Abundant Tyrannosaurus and Rare Ontogenetic Stages in the Upper Cretaceous Hell Creek Formation (Maastrichtian), Montana, USA".PLOS ONE.6(2): e16574.Bibcode:2011PLoSO...616574H.doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0016574.PMC3036655.PMID21347420.
  27. ^Myhrvold, N.(1983). "Runaway particle production in de Sitter space".Physical Review D.28(10): 2439–2444.Bibcode:1983PhRvD..28.2439M.doi:10.1103/PhysRevD.28.2439.
  28. ^Myhrvold, Nathan (2016). "Even Genius Needs a Benefactor".Scientific American.314(2): 11.Bibcode:2016SciAm.314b..11M.doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0216-11.PMID31013516.
  29. ^Gibbs, W. W.;Myhrvold, N.(2011). "A newspin on cooking ".Scientific American.304(3): 23.Bibcode:2011SciAm.304c..23G.doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0311-23a.PMID21438483.
  30. ^"Technologists Paul G. Allen and Nathan P. Myhrvold announce $12.5 million in support for revolutionary new telescope".spaceref.com. August 1, 2000.RetrievedSeptember 1,2014.
  31. ^"Computer History Museum unboxes a Babbage difference engine".April 21, 2008.RetrievedApril 28,2008.
  32. ^"The Computer History Museum Extends Its Exhibition of Babbage's Difference Engine No. 2".press release.Computer History Museum.March 31, 2009. Archived fromthe originalon February 23, 2010.RetrievedNovember 6,2009.
  33. ^"The Babbage Engine exhibit at Computer History Museum".RetrievedApril 7,2011.
  34. ^Difference Engine Leaves Computer History Museum,Mark Moack, Mountain View Voice, January 28, 2016
  35. ^Boyle, Alan (September 11, 2016)."Inside the invention factory: Get a peek at Intellectual Ventures' lab".GeekWire.RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  36. ^Myhrvold, Nathan P. "An Empirical Examination of WISE/NEOWISE Asteroid Analyses and Results". Poster at the 49th Annual Division for Planetary Sciences Meeting, October 2017.https://dps2017-aas.ipostersessions.com/default.aspx?s=1D-29-3E-5C-5D-47-88-F8-6F-EA-4C-F1-63-B2-D1-89Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  37. ^Myhrvold, Nathan P. "An Empirical Examination of the NEOWISE Results and Data Analysis". Abstract of talk presented at the 229th Meeting of the American Astronomical Society, January 5, 2017.https://aas.org/files/aas229-abstracts-pdf.pdfRetrieved January 6, 2018.
  38. ^Myhrvold, Nathan(May 22, 2018)."An empirical examination of WISE/NEOWISE asteroid analysis and results".Icarus.314:64–97.Bibcode:2018Icar..314...64M.doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2018.05.004.
  39. ^Chang, Kenneth (June 14, 2018)."Asteroids and Adversaries: Challenging What NASA Knows About Space Rocks - Two years ago, NASA dismissed and mocked an amateur's criticisms of its asteroids database. Now Nathan Myhrvold is back, and his papers have passed peer review".The New York Times.RetrievedJune 14,2018.
  40. ^Myhrvold, Nathan (May 20, 2016). "Asteroid thermal modeling in the presence of reflected sunlight with an application to WISE/NEOWISE observational data".Icarus.303:91–113.arXiv:1605.06490.Bibcode:2018Icar..303...91M.doi:10.1016/j.icarus.2017.12.024.S2CID118511665.
  41. ^Chang, Kenneth (May 23, 2016)."How Big Are Those Killer Asteroids? A Critic Says NASA Doesn't Know".The New York Times.ISSN0362-4331.RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  42. ^Hand, Eric (May 23, 2016)."Billionaire technologist accuses NASA asteroid mission of bad statistics".Science | AAAS.RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  43. ^Billings, Lee."For Asteroid-Hunting Astronomers, Nathan Myhrvold Says the Sky Is Falling".Scientific American.RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  44. ^"NASA Response to Recent Paper on NEOWISE Asteroid Size Results".NASA/JPL.May 25, 2016.RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  45. ^Clifton, Denise (June 23, 2016)."Nathan Myhrvold, the man top chefs turn to for food science advice".The Australian Financial Review.RetrievedApril 1,2023.
  46. ^Nathan Myhrvold, Chris Young, and Maxime Bilet (2011).Modernist Cuisine: The Art and Science of Cooking.Bellevue, Washington: The Cooking Lab.ISBN978-0982761007.OCLC711381030.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  47. ^"Modernist Cuisine".RetrievedSeptember 15,2010.
  48. ^Nathan Myhrvold, with Maxime Bilet (2012).Modernist Cuisine at Home.Bellevue, WA: The Cooking Lab.ISBN978-0982761014.OCLC794709458.
  49. ^Myhrvold, Nathan (2013).The Photography of Modernist Cuisine(First ed.). Bellevue, WA: The Cooking Lab.ISBN978-0982761021.OCLC844729041.
  50. ^Nathan Myhrvold, Francisco J. Migoya (2017).Modernist Bread: The Art and Science.Bellevue, WA: The Cooking Lab.ISBN978-0982761052.OCLC959037081.
  51. ^Nathan Myhrvold, Francisco J. Migoya (2021).Modernist Pizza.Bellevue, WA: The Cooking Lab.ISBN978-1734386127.OCLC1252411781.
  52. ^Mims, Christopher.""Albedo Yachts" and Marine Clouds: A Cure for Climate Change? ".Scientific American.RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  53. ^IntellectualVentures (October 26, 2009),The Stratoshield "Hose to the Sky" Could Reverse Global Warming,archivedfrom the original on December 12, 2021,retrievedJanuary 6,2018
  54. ^Zakaria, Fareed (December 20, 2009)."Solving Global Warming with Nathan Myhrvold".GPS.CNN.RetrievedApril 1,2023.
  55. ^Caldeira, Ken; Wood, Lowell (August 29, 2008)."Global and Arctic climate engineering: numerical model studies".Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society A.366(1882): 4039–4056.Bibcode:2008RSPTA.366.4039C.doi:10.1098/rsta.2008.0132.PMID18757275.S2CID891722.
  56. ^Editors, The (July 22, 2019)."The High Society That Surrounded Jeffrey Epstein".Intelligencer.New York Magazine.RetrievedAugust 28,2024.{{cite web}}:|last=has generic name (help)
  57. ^Ward, Vicky (August 3, 2021)."What Was the Real Relationship Between Jeffrey Epstein and Bill Gates?".Rolling Stone.RetrievedAugust 28,2024.
  58. ^Sherman, Gabriel (July 23, 2019)."The Epstein Case Puts New Focus on Old Names—Including Clinton".Vanity Fair.RetrievedAugust 28,2024.
  59. ^"2012 James Beard Foundation Book Awards"(PDF). The James Beard Foundation. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
  60. ^"Dr. Nathan Myhrvold Receives Honorary Degree from CIA".modernistcuisine.com.March 24, 2011.RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  61. ^"2018 James Beard Foundation Book Awards"(PDF). The James Beard Foundation. Retrieved June 25, 2018.
  62. ^"Foreign Policy's Second Annual List of the 100 Top Global Thinkers".Foreign Policy.Archived fromthe originalon March 8, 2011.RetrievedMarch 23,2011.
  63. ^"2015 UCLA College Commencement Ceremony I 2pm".YouTube.Archivedfrom the original on December 12, 2021.RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  64. ^"UCLA Division of Physical Sciences' Centennial Awards honor faculty, alumni".UCLA.edu.RetrievedJuly 10,2021.
  65. ^"Myhrvold reflects on 'Magic of Invention'".Princeton University.RetrievedJanuary 6,2018.
  66. ^"Golden Plate Awardees of the American Academy of Achievement".www.achievement.org.American Academy of Achievement.
  67. ^Mandelbaum, R.,More Business Leaders Sign On With Clinton,Forbes,September 23, 2016.
  68. ^"The Fannie and John Hertz Foundation Welcomes Two New Directors".The Hertz Foundation. April 25, 2017.RetrievedJuly 15,2019.
  69. ^"Inventing the future: The very cool world of Nathan Myhrvold *83".Princeton University. January 28, 2009.RetrievedOctober 23,2020.
  70. ^"Cameron A. Myhrvold".Department of Molecular Biology.Princeton University. June 17, 2020.RetrievedMarch 31,2023.
  71. ^Thompson, Nicholas (February 5, 2002)."Make Mine Dvorak".slate.com.RetrievedJuly 6,2023.

Further reading

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  • Auletta, Ken, "The Highwaymen", Harvest Books, 1998.ISBN0-15-600573-5— cf Chapter 17: The Microsoft Provocateur: Nathan Myhrvold, Bill Gates Corporate Gadfly.
  • Edstrom, Jennifer and Eller, Marlin, "Barbarians Led by Bill Gates: Microsoft From The Inside: How The World's Richest Corporation Wields Its Power",Holt Paperbacks,1999.ISBN0-8050-5755-2
[edit]
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