Woody was one of the founders of AI, making early contributions in pattern recognition and automated reasoning. He continued to make significant contributions to AI throughout his long career. His legacy consists not only of his scientific work but also of several generations of scientists who learned from Woody the joy of scientific research and the way to go about it. Woody's enthusiasm, his perpetual sense of optimism, his can-do attitude, and his deep sense of duty to humanity offered those who knew him the hope and comfort that truly good and great men do exist.

(Bledsoe 1976). We didn't know we were being We spent a lot of time reading by ourselves, because most of the time the other grades were having their classes. But we DID learn, and had some pretty died on 4 October 1995 of ALS, good teachers (Bledsoe 1976). Woody was one of the and recalls spending "hours just roaming founders of AI, making early contributions in around, sometimes working mathematics pattern recognition and automated reasoning. He continued to make significant contributions When Woody was 12, his father died. It was to AI throughout his long career. His a devastating blow both emotionally and legacy consists not only of his scientific work financially. As Woody recalled, "We were poor but also of several generations of scientists before, but after papa died in January 1934, who learned from Woody the joy of scientific things got worse" (Bledsoe 1976). He and the research and the way to go about it. Woody's rest of his brothers and sisters worked dreary enthusiasm, his perpetual sense of optimism, 10-hour days to make ends meet. He to humanity offered those who knew him the found work in north Texas driving a tractor all hope and comfort that truly good and great night. After a month, he hopped a freight men do exist. He graduated little farm near Maysville, Oklahoma. He moved to Oklahoma to try his took a job as a dishwasher, working 12-hour luck at farming. Woody was the fourth child days 7 days a week. In for his heroic activities in arranging the April, the restaurant owner forced him back transportation of troops across the Rhine into working 12-hour days, which was too in March, 1945. He left the Rhine bridges except the one at Remagen university without saying goodbye and had been destroyed by the retreating German joined the United States Army. Patton's Third Army decided to cross the Rhine by boats near Frankfurt rather than suffer the delay of waiting for bridge construction. Therefore the went to Officer's Candidate School (OCS) Army Corps of Engineers hauled naval By the time he in 1942, he had been promoted to second landing craft (designed for beach landings) lieutenant. While at OCS, Woody had an by truck across Europe to ferry experience that had a profound effect on him: troops across the Rhine. Bledsoe, by then an Army captain, recalls that there was Another experience at OCS at Fort only light enemy fire during the crossing; Belvoir left a lasting impression on me. His first "research" was experimenting army truck. The simple idea opened the flap and said, "Get out here. of backing the trucks into the water, Let's do the map reading." He would later father a to get on with the work, to finish the son, Greg, born in March 1947. It taught me that "if we have to had two more children, Pam and Lance.