Character Catalog

The first compiler in history, capable of translating symbolic code into machine instructions. Hopper demonstrated for the first time that a computer could process a language close to human language.

The first programming language using full English words, designed for business applications. It was the direct precursor to COBOL and proved the viability of a language 'readable' by non-specialists.

Standard programming language for business applications, of which Hopper was the principal intellectual architect. Still used today in banking and administrative systems worldwide.

A 500-page technical reference document for one of the first large-scale calculators. This manual stands as one of the earliest examples of structured computer documentation in history.

Hopper actively campaigned for the international standardization of COBOL, enabling interoperability between manufacturers. This initiative laid the groundwork for the modern concept of open computing standards.

For more than fifteen years, Hopper gave hundreds of lectures at universities, companies, and military institutions to democratize the understanding of computers. Her pedagogical talent made her an ambassador for computer science.

15:45 — Relay #70 Panel F (moth) in relay. First actual case of bug being found.

I had a running compiler and nobody would touch it. They told me computers could only do arithmetic.

We're all too focused on short-term results. We need to think about the future of computing and make it accessible to everyone.

A ship in port is safe, but that's not what ships are built for. Go out and do things, make waves.

The Mark I is a fully automatic, general-purpose, electromechanical computer that can perform sequences of arithmetic and logical operations.

Grace Hopper was born on December 9, 1906 in New York City. The city, an intellectual and economic hub of the United States, shaped her ambition and open-mindedness.

Hopper earned her bachelor's degree there in 1928, then taught mathematics. This prestigious women's college provided a stimulating environment at a time when women's access to the sciences was very limited.

Hopper earned her doctorate in mathematics there in 1934, becoming one of the few women to reach that level in the field. Yale represents the academic excellence that grounded her scientific rigor.

This is where Hopper worked on the Mark I and Mark II between 1944 and 1949. The laboratory was the birthplace of her foundational discoveries, including the famous anecdote of the first computer 'bug'.

Hopper joined the Eckert-Mauchly company (later Remington Rand) in 1949, where she developed the first A-0 compiler and laid the groundwork for COBOL. Philadelphia was the industrial heart of her innovations.

Hopper has been interred there with full military honors since 1992. Her grave reflects her dual identity: pioneer of computer science and officer in the United States Navy.

Hopper distributed pieces of copper wire to her students representing the distance traveled by light in one nanosecond. This simple teaching tool allowed her to concretely illustrate the physical constraints of processors.

Massive electromechanical calculator, 15 meters long, on which Hopper worked starting in 1944. She wrote its operating manual, pushing the limits of what was thought possible with the machines of the era.

Hopper wore the naval uniform for more than forty years. Becoming a rear admiral at a time when women were nearly absent from high military ranks symbolizes her exceptional career path.

The COBOL language, whose design Hopper oversaw, was codified in thick technical manuals. This human-readable English-based language allowed millions of non-mathematician programmers to access professional computing.

The universal programming medium of the 1940s–1970s, the punched card was the primary interface between the programmer and the machine. Hopper and her teams used them daily to submit programs to the earliest computers.

The logbook page from the Mark II with the taped insect is preserved at the Smithsonian Institution. It has become one of the most famous artifacts in the history of computing.