Grace Brewster Murray Hopper (née Murray; December 9, 1906 – January 1, 1992) was an American computer scientist and United States Navy rear admiral. One of the first programmers of the Harvard Mark I computer, she was a pioneer of computer programming who invented one of the first linkers. Hopper was the first to devise the theory of machine-independent programming languages, and the FLOW-MATIC programming language she created using this theory was later extended to create COBOL, an early high-level programming language still in use today.
Prior to joining the Navy, Hopper earned a Ph.D. in mathematics from Yale University and was a professor of mathematics at Vassar College. Hopper attempted to enlist in the Navy during World War II but was rejected because she was 34 years old. She instead joined the Navy Reserves. Hopper began her computing career in 1944 when she worked on the Harvard Mark I team led by Howard H. Aiken. In 1949, she joined the Eckert–Mauchly Computer Corporation and was part of the team that developed the UNIVAC I computer. At Eckert–Mauchly she managed the development of one of the first COBOL compilers. She believed that a programming language based on English was possible. Her compiler converted English terms into machine code understood by computers. By 1952, Hopper had finished her program linker (originally called a compiler), which was written for the A-0 System. During her wartime service, she co-authored three papers based on her work on the Harvard Mark 1.
In 1954, Eckert–Mauchly chose Hopper to lead their department for automatic programming, and she led the release of some of the first compiled languages like FLOW-MATIC. In 1959, she participated in the CODASYL consortium, which consulted Hopper to guide them in creating a machine-independent programming language. This led to the COBOL language, which was inspired by her idea of a language being based on English words. In 1966, she retired from the Naval Reserve, but in 1967 the Navy recalled her to active duty. She retired from the Navy in 1986 and found work as a consultant for the Digital Equipment Corporation, sharing her computing experiences.
The U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Hopper was named for her, as was the Cray XE6 "Hopper" supercomputer at NERSC. During her lifetime, Hopper was awarded 40 honorary degrees from universities across the world. A college at Yale University was renamed in her honor. In 1991, she received the National Medal of Technology. On November 22, 2016, she was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama.
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Some of their strengths
Grace Hooper has many admirable traits.
Based on spiritual traditions from around the world, they are someone who can be described as Intelligent, Adventurous, Energetic, Insightful, Creative, Generous, and Passionate.
Adventurous and Independent
According to Mysticism’s Astrology tradition, Grace Hooper is someone who is an adventurous, independent, and energetic person, who is insightful, imaginative, generous, and honest. A person who is ambitious and motivated.
Warm and Caring
Based on Daoism’s Ba-Zi or ‘Chinese Zodiac’ tradition, people who know Grace Hooper well know them as someone who can be warm, caring, and compassionate, like a lamp or torch.
Altruistic and Innovative
According to Hinduism’s Jyotisha or ‘Vedic Astrology’ tradition, many would also describe Grace Hooper as someone who is altruistic, inventive, energetic, and socially-conscious.
Who is inventive, open-minded and inquisitive, optimistic and cooperative, and who loves working together with others.
Charismatic and Playful
Based on the Mayan Tzolk’in or ‘Mayan Astrology’ tradition, Grace Hooper is someone who is used to being the center of attention, and who has a playful approach to dealing with life.
They are also someone who is mysterious, intuitive, and diplomatic, and who has a keen intuition, charisma, and a focus on balance and partnership.
Optimistic and Quick-witted
According to Judaism’s Kabbalah tradition, Grace Hooper tends to be someone who is optimistic and spontaneous, and who has a clear and analytical mind. Who can be witty, with a happy-go-lucky- nature that makes others cheerful, and who possesses an adventurous zest for life.
Some of Grace Hooper's challenges
While Grace Hooper has many strengths, nobody is perfect. They also have some challenging traits they need to manage.
For example, Grace Hooper can be Impulsive, Careless, Difficult, Perfectionist, Indecisive, Unrealistic, and Anxious.
Impulsive and Careless
One of Grace Hooper's key challenges is that they are someone who can be impulsive and careless.
Grace Hooper must also exercise caution as they can have a hard time reconciling wants and needs, and can have difficulty dealing with responsibility, authority, or criticism.
Anxious and Inflexible
Grace Hooper is someone who can be high-strung, impatient, and inflexible, who can be "penny wise and pound foolish", have poor listening skills, and who can be intolerant of people who share a different world view.
Irritable and Callous
Finally, Grace Hooper also can be short-tempered, childish, insensitive, and careless at times.
