Oxford University has received a $100 million gift from British-born, U.S.-based computing pioneer James Martin, United Press International reports.

The gift will establish an endowment to fund the new James Martin 21st Century School at Oxford, which will research issues such as climate change, aging societies, inequalities in wealth across countries and continents, and the risk of infectious disease epidemics, the London Independent reported. A director and international advisory board will be announced later this summer, and research programs will begin in October 2006.

"Mankind faces huge challenges as the twenty-first century unfolds," Martin said in a statement. "It is essential that our leading thinkers commit time, energy, and resources now to finding solutions to these risks and problems, which could threaten the future of humanity itself."

Martin, 70, holds masters and doctoral degrees from Oxford. A former adviser to the U.S. government, he predicted the advent of cellular telephones, the Internet, and e-mails in the 1970s. In 1981, he founded James Martin & Co., now Headstrong, a global e-solutions provider that builds digital businesses.