Grace Hopper

At the age of sixty years of Grace Hopper was promoted to captain of the third rank and sent to the well-deserved rest. But a year later the Stars and Stripes Navy recovered and returned the old woman into their ranks, while it was signed "lifetime contract". She was appointed to the position of systems analyst of the American Navy.
. When I was a closer acquaintance with the history of the life of Rear Admiral U.S. Navy, . "mother computer", . "Grandma COBOL", . "Queen of software", . incomparable Grace Brewster Murray Hopper, . I could only wonder, . that none of our attentive readers have not yet been demanded from me detailed biography of this amazing woman,
. Undoubtedly And this person deserves strapping unbreakable statues on the computer Olympus, . near which, . as a means to combat excessive pathos, . will adjoin tiny monumentik Harmful insect, . for, . according to legend, . is old Grace have dried the first computer bug (better known under the nickname of a cowboy - Bug).,
. Fearing a draft, an insurance agent, Walter Fletcher Murray firmly shut the door for the doctor
. Everything went smoothly. In just a couple of hours, his little Mary gave birth to a tiny girl, and now they both sleep. Now they will meet with Christmas, not sinking in doubt "is not it time to call vrachaN". "Everything will be fine, everything will be fine," - he told himself. "Mary's strong, she's so strong". And things seemed to go on the mend. They were able to buy a small but cozy apartment in the heart of New York, and now snobby relatives Mary Russell was forced to shut. Yes, she married a descendant of an insurance agent, not the "brilliant naval officer, whom she were arranging a match her crazy grandpa, fortunately for the U.S. Navy already loose in retirement (even though he was promoted to Admiral). Mad in 1906 has ended, and now America will need not fighters, but engineers, doctors, and: (yes, do not laugh) and insurance agents. Well though he knew the father of Mary. But it was he (the owner's spacious office of the Chief Engineer of New York City) helped them with the flat. Do not worry, it will be time for Walter to pay off all. Full. He went upstairs to the bedroom, and stood in the doorway. His girls were sleeping. Little Mary and graceful little elegant Grace
Life straightened. Mary bore him another daughter and son. He got his own office, which brought a small but steady income. Now the summer they could not afford to rent a large cabin in New Hampshire on the shore of the lake, not hanging around in the stifling heat in a city apartment. Grace, on the Rights of the elder, saddle malyshney. Walter could spend hours watching as children flock ran around the lawn in backyard. After dinner the younger stacked, and Grace and Mary, like a girlfriend, sat nemudrenuyu sew doll clothes or together rehearsed songs of the past century. By the Grace school quite fluent reading (junior was covered without a fairy tale) and decently could portray the piano with a dozen popular melodies. But the fundamental interests of the crumbs Grace concentrated in the technical field: Grandfather's car, Grandma's glasses, my mother's wrist watch, papa's watch on a chain and, finally, alarm clocks. Before alarm clocks were to get a snap, so all seven home alarms turned into seven neat mounds, consisting of gears, wheels, rollers, bells and other magical nonsense. Walter forgave her daughter's children's pranks, she was so like her mother.
Soon for Grace started school everyday. Ten years in the private school for girls later recalled as "ten years of meaningless links". Favorite mathematics, even in high school was given no more than one hour per week, the main subjects of study had ethics, manners, housekeeping, playing music. Well though, that this American lady was supposed to be enduring as a horse, so the school welcomed the physical training games. And nimble Grace played baseball, basketball, field hockey, water polo. A home with his mother Mary, they are solving problems and inventing puzzles for home. Grace dreamed of entering the College of Mathematics. As to Walter's stubborn, he hoped to quickly issue a filly married. Disturbed only by the fact that in his sixteen years, she looked at the thirteen-and fourteen of the force.
Then something happened, and what Walter was afraid of his life. One evening, Mary, fearing the draft, more firmly closed the door for the doctor, who came to her husband. The diagnosis was confirmed - thrombophlebitis (whip Murray) has progressed. It required immediate surgery. The next day, Walter took away an ambulance. He returned six weeks later: legless invalid. It seemed that the family settled in the living dead. One day he summoned Grace. She knew his father calling to talk to her about options for marriage, because he was no longer a force to support a family. She knew and was afraid of this conversation. But suddenly, Walter spoke entirely different, he told her about the categorical decision, their life savings to invest in further education of children. On the advice of mother Grace chose Vassar College, famous for its democratic traditions and the highest quality teaching of exact sciences. The first attempt was unsuccessful receipt. Grace failed the hated Latin. But when it would arrive after years of hard training, it has been prepared to accept immediately the second year (which, incidentally, did not meet the strict rules of college)
Grace graduated from college in 1928. In the diploma meant "Bachelor of Mathematics". In addition, she received an honorary diploma of the oldest academic society Phi Beta Kappa, and continued her education at Yale University. Two years later, Mary and Walter, grudgingly blessed the marriage of his eldest daughter from a failed philologist Vincent Hopper. Evil tongues classmates, there was talk that the reckless baby Grace chose my husband because of the name (hopper - the flea, grace hopper - elegant flea). After another couple of years, master of science Grace Hopper returned to Vassar College in the role of teacher (salary $ 65 a month), continuing in parallel scientific work. In 1934 she became the first women, the protection of Yale doctorate in mathematics. Before Mrs. Hopper opened up bright prospects. Numerous conferences, international seminars, reports in the most prestigious scientific institutions in U.S.. She recognized her proud of her were happy to cooperate. It got its own department, became a professor. The triumphal march of the academic "American Kowalewski" sank in 40-th year. The family gave the boat a thorough leak, and Grace, in typical fashion for himself, found a paradoxical move. She decided to leave all the good acquired by the husband and enter military service. I chose to do so it is not the right time, mankind has been drawn into another world war.
. However, even the undoubted heroic past of one of the ancestors of Grace (recall the great-grandfather was an admiral of the fleet) could not affect the military commission
. Judge for yourself why the most powerful army in the world of thin (168 cm - 47 kg), half-blind lady of 34 years with smoked lungs and chronic gastritis, which has a very remote idea of the barracks. But Assertive Hopper did not want to give up, within three years, she has to seek special solutions of various commissions on your subject and, finally, in December 1943 took the military oath. She hit the front. After the accelerated short courses in the Naval Academy newfound Lieutenant Grace Murray Hopper was assigned to the Quartermaster of Navy, . and the first place of her life became the Bureau of artillery computing projects at Harvard University,
. Grace was hired as the first programmer of the famous electromechanical computer, Mark I (more than one hundred cubic meters of shining metal). This piece is a marvel of engineering, producing up to three arithmetic operations per second and having a whole 72 bytes of RAM. Professor (lieutenant) Grace Hopper got the team of Professor (lieutenant) Howard Aiken. Their relationship is well with the first phrase uttered an eccentric professor. "Where the hell are you propadaliN" - cried Aiken just said for dating Hopper. Everything was turning as well as possible, waiting for her, needed it, she was in his place. Now our heroine toiled over dry ballistic calculations and more falling in love with the Iron Brand ". Together they have made a considerable contribution to the victory of the anti-Hitler coalition.
War ended. It's time for a peaceful life. But Grace did not return to her husband, she has issued an official divorce and took a modest bachelor housing near Harvard computer lab. In the light already appeared Mark II and Mark III, she could not stop. Legend has it that it was there and then was caught by the first "bug". In fact, the name of Grace Hopper associated with "the hunt for insects, simply because she loved to retell the story of" the first successful hunt "as their own. As far as I know, the term "bug" - minor technical obstacle - was introduced into scientific usage a great experimenter and inventor of the "energy" Thomas Edison. History of Grace about malicious moth caught in the depths of "Mark II" and dried in a workbook, refers to 1947. These things "landmark" event took place at the Naval Research Center in Dalgrene (Virginia), a few hundred kilometers from the Harvard laboratory, which served as mnogomudraya Lieutenant Hopper. This fact is documented, the magazine with moth glued to the present day is stored in the Smithsonian Museum of American History.
. If we speak about the true merits of Grace Hopper, then we should start from its contribution to the development of the theory of programming automation process
. It was her first start of uncompromising struggle against kustarschinoy programming. In everyday life introduced the concept of "library routines", which meticulous Grace collected himself, absorbing the best development of their fellow craft. This fascination with Mrs. Hopper justify the natural laziness and unwillingness whenever painfully recall "as was once someone made". The idea seems to be floating on the surface, but it was certainly revolutionary for its time. Savings capabilities was quite obvious, plus the assumption dramatically reduces the probability of random error. By the time she was one of the leading specialists in corporate Remington Rand (formerly known as the Eckert-Mauchly, . and later turned into Sperry Rand), . owns patents on the first electronic digital computers, ENIAC and UNIVAC, . these machines were twenty times the performance of all "Markov", . together,
. Grace has long passed into the category of "women over forty", when it was performed a second revolution in programming. Being stubborn in their desire to save humanity from the need to communicate with the vehicle only on language codes, Lieutenant Hopper developed the first broadcasting a program, which she called a "compiler". This program (also known as "A-0 compiler") translated into machine language creation "lazy" programmers, written in easy to handle and understand the algebraic and textual. Largely thanks to finds Grace Hopper, soon came to light and the first "friendly" programming language, COBOL (COBOL, COmmon Business Oriented Language), is still used in many financial applications.
. At the age of sixty years of Grace Hopper was promoted to captain of the third rank and sent to the well-deserved rest
. But a year later the Stars and Stripes Navy recovered and returned the old woman into their ranks, while it was signed "lifetime contract". She was appointed to the position of systems analyst of the American Navy. Gray-haired "katrangu" Hopper has been allocated a separate room, . which cheerful retired immediately adorned with wall watch, . going in the opposite direction, . and a desktop box for storage with shocking inscription "personal computer",
. Her duties included supervision of countless military computer programs and the teaching of computational mathematics to students in uniform and in civilian. It was worn by a mad meteor from state to state with the same butt "Lacco strike" without the filter in the yellow teeth, causing a reasonable, good, eternal. Students liked the old lady for the imagery and the ability to mind-boggling gestures. Her real calls to save time and effort went into legend: saving one nanosecond is illustrated by 30-centimeter piece of copper wire. And once vexed negligence of the Young Generation Grace dragged into the audience a whole microsecond - a coil of wire trehsotmetrovuyu. When in 1969 the first elected "Man of the Year" in the computer world the United States, that title almost unanimously been awarded is Grace Hopper. Countless awards, which showered her later, but this was the most memorable.
. Merits grandmother before mankind was so obvious that it will soon come to your senses military authorities approved an order to "assign a captain Grace Hopper of the next rank of captain second rank"
. It was in 1973, Grace was well over sixty, and a military career, she has no intention. But before the generals like to change the straps on the jacket "eternal pensioner", that even ten years she was promoted to commander (captain of the first rank), and by the seventy-nine years was Rear Admiral. President Ronald Reagan personally shook wrinkled paw. Alex Russell would be proud of their brave great-granddaughter. And yet, at the age of eighty, she was finally sacked. At the ceremony, . dedicated to this event, . heroic Admiral Lehman, . catching the medal "For Distinguished Service" on his chest colleagues, . tragically said Grace, . where I'll find your man kalibraN! "But, . Upon his retirement, . Mrs. Hopper is not reassured,
. She became a senior consultant for Digital Equipment Corporation, and in this role has continued to go all over the world with popular lectures and scientific reports until the last days. At one of the evil cartoons, published in the magazine New Yorker, old Grace refused to go into the gates of heaven until the apostle Peter while you build your own PC. In the 91-m next U.S. president, George Bush, handed her the National Medal for the development of technology (something like our Lenin / Stalin Prize). She was buried at Arlington Cemetery with full military honors, just after New Year celebrations in 1992. In the spring of 1996, the roads appeared glittering steel missile frigate USS Hopper (DUG 70). Old woman would have liked.