Rear Admiral Hopper

 This blog post will be a bit different, since it wasn't a technical reading like most. This week, we read (and heard) about the life and accomplishments of Grace Murray Hopper. I had of course heard of her before, and I knew about her contributions to COBOL, but I learned a lot more today. 

For starters, let's get the bad out of the way. Although I think everything she was able to accomplish in her life is admirable, I disagree with what she thinks about women and their opportunities in the field. Of course, her thinking might have been inspiring, as she affirmed that women could accomplish the same as men if they tried just as hard as men did. I think this kind of statement is harmful because, besides being obviously false, it could discourage women from the field if they see that their efforts are not paying off, since they might think it's their fault. 

With that out of the way, I think her accomplishments are beyond amazing. Firstly, I thank her and mathematicians like her for thinking of compilers and paving the way and allowing people like me (who aren't too fond of pure mathematics) to be able to program today. I'm sure her contributions to society are a big part of why today's society is like it is, from helping develop (unknowingly) the atomic bomb to introducing coding to the business world. I think what's most amazing was her ability to move forward despite the lack of opportunities she had due to her biology (not having the ability to teach or remain in the navy). 

I think it's great for us to learn more about women like Hopper, because as is mentioned in the video, we only hear about men. And sure, some people might think that it's because this is a male-dominated field, but we know that it wasn't this way before, and we know of so many more women like Ada Lovelace or Joan Clarke, who aren't mentioned as much as their male counterparts.