Born: December 9, 1906
Died: January 1, 1992
Biography:
Grace Brewster Hopper (née Murray; December 9, 1906 – January 1, 1992) was an American computer scientist, mathematician, and United States Navy rear admiral. She was a pioneer of computer programming and one of the first programmers of the Harvard Mark I computer. Hopper made significant contributions to the field, including the invention of one of the first linkers.
Before her career in computing, Hopper earned a Ph.D. in both mathematics and mathematical physics from Yale University. She also served as a professor of mathematics at Vassar College. In 1944, Hopper joined the Navy Reserves after being rejected for active duty due to her age. This decision marked the beginning of her computing career.
Hopper’s journey in computing began in 1944 when she joined the Harvard Mark I team, led by Howard H. Aiken. During her wartime service, she co-authored three papers based on her work on the Harvard Mark I. She also wrote the first computer manual, titled A Manual of Operation for the Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator.
In 1949, Hopper joined the Eckert–Mauchly Computer Corporation where she worked on the development of the UNIVAC I computer. She managed the development of one of the first COBOL compilers, believing that programming should be simplified with an English-based language. Her compiler converted English terms into machine code understood by computers. By 1952, Hopper had developed her program linker, originally called a compiler, for the A-0 System.
Hopper’s expertise and contributions to the field led Eckert–Mauchly to appoint her as the leader of their department for automatic programming in 1954. Under her leadership, Eckert–Mauchly released compiled languages like FLOW-MATIC. In 1959, she participated in the CODASYL consortium, which sought her guidance in developing a machine-independent programming language. This ultimately led to the creation of COBOL, a programming language based on English words.
Throughout the 1960s, Hopper actively promoted the use of COBOL. In 1966, she retired from the Naval Reserve but was recalled to active duty in 1967. Hopper finally retired from the Navy in 1986 and continued to share her computing experiences as a consultant for the Digital Equipment Corporation.
Hopper’s contributions to the field of computing were widely acknowledged and recognized during her lifetime. She received 40 honorary degrees from universities worldwide, and a college at Yale University was renamed in her honor. In 1991, Hopper was awarded the National Medal of Technology for her outstanding contributions to the development of computer programming languages.
Grace Hopper’s legacy as a computer scientist and mathematician continues to inspire and influence the world of technology. Her pioneering work and dedication to simplifying programming languages have left an indelible mark on the field of computing, making her a trailblazer and legend in the history of women’s contributions to technology.
Awards:
– National Medal of Technology (1991)