The Department is pleased to welcome Peter Lorensen, a visiting faculty member for the 2012-13 academic year.

Lorensen, who has dual citizenship in the United States and Denmark, teaches computer science at Copenhagen Business Academy, a college with five campuses. This fall he is sitting in on and assisting with Duke’s introductory Python programming course (CPS 101 with Professor Owen Astrachan) and the mobile applications course (CPS 290, From Concept to Client, with professors Robert Duvall and Richard Lucic). He’ll teach the Python course and co-teach a version of the applications course in the spring (CPS 408, Delivering Software: Concept to Client).

“A civil engineer, psychologist and computer scientist by education, Peter is interested in using computer games as a pedagogical tool,” Computer Science Chairman Carlo Tomasi said. “Peter deeply understands the potential computer science has — when well taught — to excite and inspire young people and help form their ways of thinking logically and abstractly about problems in any domain.”

Lorensen received his Master's degree in computer science from the University of Copenhagen in 2008 and has taught for the last four years.

“What drives me is the fascination of opening the door to a whole new world,” he said. “Some people see programming as dry technical stuff, but I see it as a creative field. You create something when you program. You create programs like Google, Skype, and Facebook that change people’s lives. And that world is what I open the door to for all these young people.”

Lorensen’s wife, Marlene, is at Duke for a year as well, conducting theological research and collaborating with Professor Charles Campbell at Duke Divinity School. The couple and their three children are enjoying traveling around North Carolina on weekends.

“Our computer science education group and I look forward to broadening our pedagogical toolkit through our interaction with Peter,” Tomasi said. “His sociable attitude, broad interests and gentle sense of humor make him a great person to hang out with.”