Gregory J. E. Rawlins

Papers

Total Citations

459

H-Index

About

Gregory J. E. Rawlins is a foundational figure in computational geometry and the theory of search, best known for his pioneering work on searching in the plane under uncertainty. His landmark 1993 paper, "Searching in the Plane," with over 420 citations, introduced and formalized the problem of locating a target in an unknown environment using minimal movement—a cornerstone of modern robotics, autonomous navigation, and sensor networks. This work established key competitive analysis frameworks for search algorithms, influencing decades of subsequent research. Rawlins also made early contributions to search with uncertainty, as seen in his 1988 extended abstract, which laid groundwork for probabilistic and adversarial search models. Beyond his technical contributions, he is the author of the acclaimed textbook "Compared to What? An Introduction to the Analysis of Algorithms," which has shaped how students and researchers think about algorithm performance. His research continues to inspire advances in geometric optimization, motion planning, and resource-constrained exploration, making him a vital reference for anyone studying algorithmic search and decision-making under incomplete information.