Mother of COBOL

In 1976 I learned a new language that I would use almost daily for the next 12 years. The name of the language: COBOL (Common Business-Oriented Language). The "Hello World" program on the left is a cherished memory for many of us.

This Saturday is the centennial of Grace Hopper, who was born on December 9, 1906. Often referred to as "the mother of COBOL," her contribution to the theory and practice of programming is commonly appreciated as enormous. She is credited, among other achievements, with being the first person to develop a compiled program in an age when computers worked by running programs that were interpreted one line at a time. Grace Hopper died January 1, 1992. Read more here.