Story map
Follow the question, method, turning points and impact behind this person's work.
The question or challenge
How could computers become more useful to people who did not want to write only machine-level instructions?
Their work and method
Hopper worked on early computers, compilers, and language standardisation while teaching and advocating practical experimentation.
Turning points
Her compiler work helped advance the idea that programs could be written in more human-readable forms.
Impact
Work can create value and still involve limits or trade-offs. Look at both sides of the impact.
Positive
- +Influenced programming languages and generations of computer scientists.
Trade-offs
- ±Hero stories can hide the collaborative nature of computing history.
- ±Popular stories sometimes credit her alone for the Mark II moth; the logbook records a team discovery and the word bug already existed.
What to remember
If you had to explain this story to a friend, what would you want them to remember?
- Describe a fault precisely.
- Test likely causes one at a time.
- Give teams credit accurately.
Featured in these lessons
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Explore skills
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Sources & further reading
- Smithsonian, Log Book With Computer Bug - https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/object/nmah_334663
- Yale, Grace Murray Hopper Collection - https://archives.yale.edu/repositories/12/resources/3560