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Kenneth James Breeding, age 64, Professor Emeritus of Electrical and Computer Engineering at The Ohio State University in Columbus, died 11 February 2006 at Riverside Hospital in Columbus from cancer. Among his contributions to electrical and computer engineering, two merit special mention. First he worked on the design and construction of Illiac II and Illiac III, the latter one of the world's first computer vision machines. Second Breeding designed many courses in computer engineering that later contributed to the unification of the departments of electrical engineering and computer and information science. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) awarded him its Centennial medal for his contributions to the profession of electrical engineering. At OSU he was honored with the Outstanding Teaching Award from the Department of Electrical Engineering and the Ralph Boyer Award for Excellence in Teaching Innovation from the College of Engineering. Kenneth Breeding joined The Ohio Academy of Science in 1993, affiliating with the Electrical and Computer Engineering Section.
The son of James H. and Zelma (Smith) Breeding, Kenneth James Breeding was born 20 June 1941 in Shelbyville, Illinois. Kenneth Breeding and his parents were close. He recalls them as "wonderful parents, loving, kind, social and always willing to put the best interests of their children first. We were loved, safe, cared for, and encouraged to be everything that we could be." As a child, he was interested in radio and other electronic devices. The family rarely dined at the kitchen table, which Breeding kept full of radio parts, vacuum tubes, wires, and batteries. From an early age he was an avid reader and frequent visitor to the library. A Cub Scout, Breeding rose to become a Boy Scout and an Eagle Scout. Scouting inculcated in him an enjoyment of the outdoors, of canoeing and of camaraderie with other scouts. As a student, he excelled at science and mathematics. He played trombone in the high school band and was a member of the National Honors Society and the Science Club. His grades placed him on the Honor...