Dr. Grace Murray Hopper invention of the Mark I computer

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Computer Software by Grace Murray Hopper

It is quite hard to imagine today’s world without computer technology. It paved way for many other forms of inventions and improved the quality of life to a considerable extent. Of the many inventions that we get to hear about today, Dr. Grace Murray Hopper’s computer software system comes across as the best one that paved way for drastic development of the technological world. She was a highly revered woman with strong capabilities.

Grace Murray Hopper

Dr. Grace Brewster Murray Hopper was born on December 9, 1906 in the New York city to Walter Murray and Mary Horne. Grace was a curious right from her childhood. She received bachelor’s degree in Physics and mathematics from Vassar College and her master’s degree from Yale University in the year 1930. She also completed her PH.D. in mathematics from Yale. Her husband Vincent Foster Hopper was a New York University professor.

She joined the U.S. Navy and was sworn into the US Naval reserve in 1943 during World War II. She then went onto serve in the Bureau of Ordinance Computation Project at Harvard University. After the period of war was over, her duties with the navy ended and she joined Remington Rand as a senior programmer. In the year 1952, she became Director of Automatic programming and oversaw the work on common business language. She served the navy in various capacities and was contributed to the country immensely. She received the National Medal of Technology woman inventor award in the year 1991 which was presented by President George Bush.

COBOL

Hopper lead a team that was invented the Common Business-Oriented Language (COBOL), the first computer software program for businesses. Till date, COBOL is considered to be an exceptional software program that is most widely used business language. She also worked towards standardizing of computer language internationally. The language was a result of Conference on Data Systems Languages which brought together several experts in the technology space. Hopper was a technical consultant to the committee and it was then the COBOL was invented. Hopper also created validation software for COBOL as a part of standardization program. COBOL is definitely one of the greatest inventions that are considered valid even today.

Grace Hopper comes across as an immense personality with strong capabilities. She passed away on January 1, 1992 at the age of 85. She held multiple honorary degrees from about thirty universities.

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