Communications of the ACM
Yale Will Rename Calhoun College to Honor 'trailblazing' Alum Grace Murray Hopper
Yale Universitys Calhoun College will be renamed to honor trailblazing computer scientist, brilliant mathematician and teacher, and dedicated public servant" Grace Murray Hopper.
Credit: Wikimedia
Yale University’s Calhoun College will be renamed to honor Grace Murray Hopper, a Yale alumna who was a “trailblazing computer scientist, brilliant mathematician and teacher, and dedicated public servant,” Yale President Peter Salovey announced Saturday.
The decision, made Friday by the 19-member Yale Corporation, reverses the trustees’ decision in April not to rename Calhoun, at the end of an academic year in which debates and discussions were held across campus.
Hopper was an early computer scientist who foresaw the importance the technology would have in daily life.
“At a time when people all thought that only specialists would touch a computer, she anticipated where we are today,” Salovey said Saturday in a conference call.
Hopper received a master’s degree from Yale in 1930 in mathematics and a doctorate in mathematics and mathematical physics in 1934, according to information provided by Yale.
She was on the team that developed the first computer language, “compiler,” in 1952 and was instrumental in creating word-based computer languages, including COBOL.
Hopper also served in the U.S. Naval Reserve for 20 years and was called into active duty at age 60, retiring as a rear admiral at 79. She died in 1992 and is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.
From New Haven Register
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