Mathematics genius, computer pioneer, inventor, teacher - Grace Hopper's accomplishments encompass a range of achievement that have helped transform society. The woman who became known as "Amazing Grace" and "The Grandmother of the Computer Age" was born before Ford launched his first Model T and before women had the right to vote. Educated at Vassar and Yale, Hopper joined the Navy during World War II to help win the War. Her formidable skills in mathematics helped propel her into the brand new world of "computing machines," and she loved the opportunities to innovate. She worked on the early UNIVACs, and soon began to create computer "languages" - mathematical equations computers could understand. Recognizing the need for more "user-friendly" language in English to enable more people to work with computers, she pioneered COBOL, a computer language that promoted easier access. A leader and pioneer in the technology that has transformed information flow forever, Hopper was also the first woman to attain the rank of Rear Admiral in the U.S. Navy. In 1991, she won the National Medal of Technology.

Additional Resources:

Billings, Charlene W. Grace Hopper, Navy Admiral and Computer Pioneer.Hillside, New Jersey: Enslow Pub., 1989.

Marx, Christy. Grace Hopper: the first woman to program the first computer in the United States. New York, New York: Rosen Pub., 2002.

A Manual of Operations for the Automatic Sequence Controlled Calculator. Harvard University Press. 1946.

With Steven L. Mandell and edited by Clyde Perlee. Understanding Computers. Unknown publisher, 3rd edition, 1990.

Oral History Interviews, undated. "Women in the Federal Government," 40 items. Radcliffe College, The Arthur & Elizabeth Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in Ameica. Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Voice of America interviews with eight American women of achievement. United States Information Agency, 1984. National Archives and Records Administration. College Park, Maryland.