Pike isn't overstating it when says the influence of Ritchie's work can't be overstated, and though Ritchie received the Turing Award in 1983 and theNationalMedalofTechnology in 1998, he still hasn't gotten his due.
In the afternoon, the President will award twelve eminent researchers theNationalMedalof Science and eleven extraordinary inventors theNationalMedalofTechnology and Innovation, the highest honors bestowed by the United States Government upon scientists, engineers, and inventors.