Resources for Mar 1, 2010

COBOL COBOL was defined by the CODASYL committee which extended Hopper's FLOW-MATIC language with some ideas from the IBM equivalent, the COMTRAN. However, it was her idea that programs could be written in a language that was close to English rather than in machine code or languages close to machine code (such as assembly language), which is how it was normally done at that time. From 1967 to 1977, Hopper served as the director of the Navy Programming Languages Group in the Navy's Office of Information Systems Planning and was promoted to the rank of Captain in 1973.[8] She developed validation software for the programming language COBOL and its compiler as part of a COBOL standardization program for the entire Navy.[8] [edit]Standards In the 1970s, she pioneered the implementation of standards for testing computer systems and components, most significantly for earlyprogramming languages such as FORTRAN and COBOL. The Navy tests for conformance to these standards led to significant convergence among the programming language dialects of the major computer vendors. In the 1980s, these tests (and their official administration) were assumed by the National Bureau of Standards (NBS), known today as the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). [edit]Retirement Hopper retired from the Naval Reserve with the rank of Commander at the end of 1966. She was recalled to active duty in August 1967 for a six-month period that turned into an indefinite assignment. She again retired in 1971 but was asked to return to active duty again in 1972. She was promoted to Captain in 1973 by Admiral Elmo R. Zumwalt, Jr. After Rep. Philip Crane saw her on a March 1983 segment of 60 Minutes, he championedH.J.RES.341 a joint resolution in the House of Representatives which led to her promotion toCommodore by special Presidential appointment.[9] In 1985, the rank of Commodore was renamed Rear Admiral, Lower Half. She retired (involuntarily) from the Navy on August 14, 1986. At a celebration held in Boston on the USS Constitution to celebrate her retirement, Hopper was awarded the Defense Distinguished Service Medal, the highest non-combat award possible by the Department of Defense. At the moment of her retirement, she was the oldest officer in the United States Navy, and aboard the oldest ship in the United States Navy.[10] She was then hired as a senior consultant to Digital Equipment Corporation, a position she retained until her death in 1992, aged 85. Grace Hopper (January 1984)