Explore the life and work of E. Allen Emerson, the 2007 ACM Turing Award recipient, in this comprehensive interview. Delve into Emerson's early childhood, high school experiences, and family background before following his academic journey through college and his return to the University of Texas. Gain insights into his time at Harvard and the development of his interest in computer science, particularly in verification. Discover the state of the art in verification during Emerson's early career and learn about the invention of model checking, including the development of CTL and CTF. Understand the initial reception of model checking and its impact on the field of computer science. Examine the concepts of temporal logic, verification, and the debate between branching time and linear time approaches. This in-depth conversation provides a fascinating look at the career of a pioneering computer scientist and the evolution of crucial verification techniques in computing.