Brilliant for its time.
Hopper was an amazing woman!
Grace holding a nanosecond (a length of copper wire)
Posted on 09/24/2016 5:12:28 PM PDT by ak267
Grace Brewster Murray Hopper (December 9, 1906 – January 1, 1992), née Grace Brewster Murray, was an American computer scientist and United States Navy Rear Admiral.[1] She was one of the first programmers of the Harvard Mark I computer in 1944,[2] invented the first compiler for a computer programming language,[3][4][5][6][7] and was one of those who popularized the idea of machine-independent programming languages which led to the development of COBOL, one of the first high-level programming languages.
Owing to her accomplishments and her naval rank, she is sometimes referred to as "Amazing Grace".[8][9] The U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke class guided-missile destroyer USS Hopper (DDG-70) is named for her, as is the Cray XE6 "Hopper" supercomputer at NERSC.[10]
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COBOL was a wonderful language for it’s time. I started programming it on punch cards.
I remember watching her on 60 minutes. A fascinating women.
My father (career Army, WWII combat veteran) used to have RADM Hopper speak at his business communications classes when he taught university. She was small in physical stature, but huge in presence and intellect.
“Ever see what a nanosecond looks like?”
"Ceterum censeo Hillary esse delendam."
Garde la Foi, mes amis! Nous nous sommes les sauveurs de la République! Maintenant et Toujours!
(Keep the Faith, my friends! We are the saviors of the Republic! Now and Forever!)
LonePalm, le Républicain du verre cassé (The Broken Glass Republican)
Brilliant for its time.
Hopper was an amazing woman!
Grace holding a nanosecond (a length of copper wire)
She was a great lady.
I too had the opportunity to meet and talk with her circa 1974. She was quite remarkable.
Wasn’t she responsible for coining the term “computer bug”?
not directly, though her logbooks documented a moth in the UNIVAC wiring
Thank you for that witty one. I wonder if Hillary has said a single truly funny or witty thing this entire election.
It’s time to close the book on this 40-year American nightmare of a woman.
Yes, Admiral Grace did indeed coin the term “bug” for a computer problem.
While working on one of the early computers, a problem arose. Her crew couldn’t find the source of the problem, so the entire system was taken apart. At last they found a moth shorting out the contacts on a connector. The moth was taped into the log book with the note that the “bug” had been found. Computer problems are called “bugs” to this day.
Admiral Grace is also the source of the great quotation, “Ships are safe in harbor but that’s not what ships are built for.”
And another, “If you think you’re right, go ahead. It’s easier to apologize than it is to get permission.”
(Apologies if I paraphrased anything here.)
My former collegue told me that in the early days she would go to Cobol conferences and she and Grace were the only women in the room. That friend just passes away at 89, after retiring at 85.
She certainly didn’t voice any “we women were such victims” tripe in her commencement speech. Just the opposite, which was part of what made her inspiring.
Bookmark
Got to hear her speak and met her afterwards in 1985. Still have my “nanosecond” stashed somewhere. Amazing, classy woman and Naval flag officer. Rest in peace.
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