{"id":27271,"date":"2025-04-02T12:12:30","date_gmt":"2025-04-02T16:12:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/americanspaces.state.gov\/?p=27271"},"modified":"2026-05-26T11:48:18","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T15:48:18","slug":"grace-hopper","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/americanspaces.state.gov\/grace-hopper\/","title":{"rendered":"Grace Hopper"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Grace Hopper: Mathematician, Computer Scientist, Innovator <\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n\n
PROGRAM TOOLKIT FOR AMERICAN SPACES<\/strong><\/strong> <\/h5>\n\n\n\n
An American Hero<\/a><\/em><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

This toolkit is designed for programming at American Spaces to introduce pioneering mathematician Grace Hopper and highlight her spirit of innovation and enduring legacy in the field of computer science. <\/em> <\/em><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo Credit: National Museum of American History<\/a><\/sup><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Photo credit: National Museum of American History <\/a><\/sup>
Hopper and her team at Harvard are credited with popularizing the terms computer bug and debug, after they found this moth in the IBM Mark II and placed it in their logbook.   <\/sup><\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

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KEY DEFINITIONS<\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Compiler <\/strong>\u2013 a computer program written to translate high-level language used by humans into a format readable by machines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Machine language<\/strong> \u2013 low-level programming language understood by computers, using binary bits of 0s and 1s. Synonym: machine code.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Innovate <\/strong>\u2013 to make changes by introducing new methods, ideas, or products to resolve a problem or make a process more efficient.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Binary Code<\/strong> \u2013 code used by computers, based on a number system in which there are only two possible states, off and on, symbolized by 0 and 1, respectively. All machine language is binary code, but not all binary code is machine language.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Platform independence<\/strong> \u2013 the ability of a computer programming language to run on various operating systems without requiring the code to be rewritten.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

WAVES<\/strong> <\/strong>\u2013 Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service, a branch of the U.S. Naval Reserve created to enlist American women during World War II.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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INTRODUCTION<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The United States is a leader in computer science development. Mathematician Grace Hopper (1906-1992) was an early innovator in computer programming and was instrumental in America\u2019s technological success. This toolkit provides videos, articles, and lesson plans for American Spaces audiences to learn about Hopper\u2019s role in the development of computer programming languages and the impact of her innovative compiler on the computing industry.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Photo Credit: Lynn Gilber<\/a>t<\/sup><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

WHO WAS GRACE HOPPER?<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Grace Hopper was a mathematics professor who became a computer programmer when she joined the U.S. Navy during World War II. She was the only woman on the team working with some of the earliest IBM Mark computers used in the war effort. She created the first computer compiler, a tool which translates programmers\u2019 commands into machine language and is foundational to modern programming languages. She retired from the Navy with the rank of Rear Admiral, one of the highest-ranking women of her time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Photo credit: <\/strong>National Museum of American History<\/strong> <\/a><\/sup>
Harvard Mark I Control Panel, IBM ASCC<\/strong><\/sup><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

MORE RESOURCES<\/em><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Videos<\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Grace Hopper, Computer Scientist and Military Leader | Biography<\/a> (2 minutes) \u2013 A brief, engaging introduction to Hopper\u2019s life and achievements<\/p>\n\n\n\n

American Women Serving on All Fronts – 1944 | U.S. National Archives<\/a> (9 minutes) \u2013 Archival video of women serving in various roles to support the war effort during World War II.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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BOOKS<\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n
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Grace Hopper: Computer Engineer | Libby by OverDrive<\/a> \u2013 This short, accessible biography of Hopper is written for young adults and includes photographs.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Grace Hopper: Admiral of the Cyber Sea | Libby by OverDrive<\/a> \u2013 This biography brings Hopper to life through numerous quotes and also summarizes 20th century computing history<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BIOGRAPHICAL ARTICLES<\/strong><\/em><\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n