PC ProSchools – TechTalk

Today, March 8^th, is the 101^st International Women’s Day so I figured I would write about some women who significantly contributed to IT. It is no secret that women are under represented in the IT industry but that hasn’t lessened their impact.

Ada Lovelace,  or more properly, Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace (1815-1852) is considered to be the first programmer.She wrote programs for a computer that hadn’t been built yet, but were based on Charles Babbage’s plans for the Analytical engine.

Rear Admiral Grace Murray Hopper (1906-1992) was influence in the field of computer programming. She developed the first complier and came up with the concepts behind the programming language COBOL. .She also popularized the use of bug referring to computer programming glitches by explaining the time an associated working on the Harvard Mark II computer discovered a moth inside the machine and noted in the log that this may be the first time an actual bug impeded computer operations. She also coined the phrase “It is easier to ask for forgiveness than it is to get permission”. In 1996 the Navy named the destroyer USS Hopper after her, how many ships has the US Navy named after you?

Maria Azua currently the VP of Technology and Innovation at IBM was inducted into the WITI (Women in Technology International)Hall of fame in 2006. She is a prolific inventor with 48 patents and 41 pending, these patents are in area such as telecommunications, web servers and data manipulation. She provides leadership though a variety of organizations and a role model for anyone interested in IT.

These are only three of the many women that have contributed and continue to contribute to our industry.

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