(Note: Back in 1976 or so, I took a course in programming the large computers called “Main Frames”. One of the little nuggets in our lessons was the early development of computers. U.S.Navy rear admiral Grace Hopper was one of those famous characters. In 1947 when Harvard’s large Mark II system crashed, she discovered that a moth had died on one of the vacuum tubes and shorted out the system. The term, “There’s a bug in the system” came from that incident. She was also the creator of COBOL, which I loved! It was still in use by banking systems in the 2000’s because they could not replace the software with an equal. – Maureen Alley, thedignityofman.net)
Distinguished U. S. Navy Rear Admiral (lower half) Grace Hopper would have been 107 today, if she were still alive. She died in 1992, age 85. Yet from age 7—when her innate technical curiosity led her to dismantle seven alarm clocks just to see how they worked, until her mother limited her experimentation to one clock—until her death, Grace Hopper pursued what she loved. Earning top grades and accolades throughout college, especially in physics and mathematics, she ultimately earned a Ph.D. in mathematics from Yale and, after graduation, taught at Vassar College for a number of years.
In 1943, her career took a sharp turn; one might say, an historic turn. World War II motivated her to volunteer to serve in the WAVES, part of the U.S. Navy Reserve force. According to Wikipedia, Dr. Hopper trained at the Naval Reserve Midshipmen’s School at Smith College in Massachusetts, graduating first in her class a year later. She was assigned to the Bureau of Ships Computation Project at Harvard University. It was here that Grace Hopper was assigned to serve as a member of the Mark I computer programming staff. Her achievements in developing the computer and its capabilities became legend.
Yet even as a pioneer of early computing technology. Dr. Hopper never tired of teaching. Until her death, she continued engaging eager audiences and young people with a fascination and appreciation of computers. Google devoted a “Google Doodle“ to her achievements in history.
“The most important thing I’ve accomplished, other than building the compiler, is training young people,” Dr. Hopper once said. “They come to me, you know, and say, ‘Do you think we can do this?’ I say, ‘Try it.’ And I back ’em up. They need that. I keep track of them as they get older and I stir ’em up at intervals so they don’t forget to take chances.” …That is a good lesson for all of us Catholic business professionals to remember! …Read More about Grace Hopper>>