Milestone-Proposal:The Compiler, 1952
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Docket #:2020-03
This proposal has been submitted for review.
To the proposer’s knowledge, is this achievement subject to litigation? No
Is the achievement you are proposing more than 25 years old? Yes
Is the achievement you are proposing within IEEE’s designated fields as defined by IEEE Bylaw I-104.11, namely: Engineering, Computer Sciences and Information Technology, Physical Sciences, Biological and Medical Sciences, Mathematics, Technical Communications, Education, Management, and Law and Policy. Yes
Did the achievement provide a meaningful benefit for humanity? Yes
Was it of at least regional importance? Yes
Has an IEEE Organizational Unit agreed to pay for the milestone plaque(s)? Yes
Has an IEEE Organizational Unit agreed to arrange the dedication ceremony? Yes
Has the IEEE Section in which the milestone is located agreed to take responsibility for the plaque after it is dedicated? Yes
Has the owner of the site agreed to have it designated as an IEEE Milestone? Yes
Year or range of years in which the achievement occurred:
1952 -1959
Title of the proposed milestone:
The Compiler, 1952
Plaque citation summarizing the achievement and its significance:
Grace M. Hopper invented the compiler. The compiler translated readable English keywords or commands into machine-readable instructions or code thus creating well-defined communication between programmers and computers. It made possible programs written for different computers rather than one. Based on the compiler, the Flow-Matic was used in the UNIVAC. This shaped the creation of COBOL, a programming language, that facilitated the information highway and the beginning of IT industry.
In what IEEE section(s) does it reside?
IEEE Philadelphia Section
IEEE Organizational Unit(s) which have agreed to sponsor the Milestone:
IEEE Organizational Unit(s) paying for milestone plaque(s):
Unit: IEEE Philadelphia Section
Senior Officer Name: Chris Dietsch, Chair
Unit: IEEE Philadelphia Section
Senior Officer Name: Emilio M. Salgueiro, Past Chair
Unit: IEEE Membership Committee
Senior Officer Name: Kathleen M. McDevitt, Chair
IEEE Organizational Unit(s) arranging the dedication ceremony:
Unit: IEEE Philadelphia Milestone committee
Senior Officer Name: Kathleen M. McDevitt, Chair
Unit: IEEE Membership Committee
Senior Officer Name: Kathleen M. McDevitt, Chair
Unit: IEEE Women In Engineering Affinity Group, Philadelphia
Senior Officer Name: Bo Beth Sun, IEEE WIE Chair
Unit: IEEE Philadelphia Section
Senior Officer Name: Emilio M. Salgueiro, Past Chair
IEEE section(s) monitoring the plaque(s):
IEEE Section: IEEE Philadelphia Section
IEEE Section Chair name: Chris Dietsch, Chair
IEEE Section: IEEE Philadelphia Section
IEEE Section Chair name: Emilio Salgueiro, Past Chair
Milestone proposer(s):
Proposer name: Kathleen M McDevitt (Kate)
Proposer email: Proposer's email masked to public
Please note: your email address and contact information will be masked on the website for privacy reasons. Only IEEE History Center Staff will be able to view the email address.
Street address(es) and GPS coordinates of the intended milestone plaque site(s):
200 South 33rd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, GPS Latitude: 39.95239 - Longitude: -75.190489
Describe briefly the intended site(s) of the milestone plaque(s). The intended site(s) must have a direct connection with the achievement (e.g. where developed, invented, tested, demonstrated, installed, or operated, etc.). A museum where a device or example of the technology is displayed, or the university where the inventor studied, are not, in themselves, sufficient connection for a milestone plaque.
Please give the address(es) of the plaque site(s) (GPS coordinates if you have them). Also please give the details of the mounting, i.e. on the outside of the building, in the ground floor entrance hall, on a plinth on the grounds, etc. If visitors to the plaque site will need to go through security, or make an appointment, please give the contact information visitors will need. This is an appeal to the rules of locating a milestone. Philadelphia is an older city and so locations where an invention was made become unavailable, but an alternate location is open for placement. We have this situation with the Compiler Milestone. There is a precedent involving the Ben Franklin Milestone where precise location was difficult. The building at 3747 Ridge Avenue where the compiler was invented has a cyclone fence around it and is unavailable to the public today. Current use is an interior decorating company. I personally spoke with the owners, and they do not want the milestone on their property. The city has a plaque on a pole outside this building as the place that invented the computer. Two poles would be clutter. The former Sperry Rand building at 1900 Alleghany Avenue has been replaced by a drug rehab medical center with an apartment complex to house the clients. It would be extremely difficult to get permission to locate a milestone here. Visitors would be highly disturbing to the residents. Information about this building came from Marvin Weinstein, who was once Chair of the Philadelphia section. He worked for Sperry Rand when Grace was Director of Programing in the sixties at this address A building that fits all the requirements exists at University of Pennsylvania, Moore Engineering school. It is located at 200 South 33rd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, GPS Latitude: 39.95239 - Longitude: -75.190489. It is in a very busy area with much-walking traffic. It is safe, with visibility, and secure. UNISYS is the caretaker for this history of early computing at this University’s Moore Engineering School. The Milestone for the invention of the computer is already there. This would be a companion. Here is a condensed history. After the invention of the ENIAC at the University of Pennsylvania, Eckert-Mauchly Computer Corporation (EMCC) was formed in 1946. By 1949, EMCC was brought out by Remington Rand and John Mauchly hired Grace M. Hopper. The compiler was invented in 1952 at 3747 Ridge Avenue, East Falls, Philadelphia, PA. Shortly afterward, the company moved to 1900 Allegany Avenue. In 1955, Remington Rand merged with Sperry Rand. In 1957, The Sperry Rand Company used the Compiler (The Flow-Matic) in UNIVAC, the first open market computer. Eventually, Sperry Rand merged with the business machine company, Burroughs. Today the company is UNISYS. Many of the same people who worked on the ENIAC were hired from the Moore Engineering School of the University of Pennsylvania. They worked on the UNIVAC using the compiler, invented by Grace M. Hopper. It is important to note that COBOL, the later result of the compiler, became a standard computer language in 1960 and is used to this day. It was promoted by many lecturers at the University of Pennsylvania, many universities across the country, and internationally by Grace M. Hopper. She educated her pupils on the early history of computers, the compiler, COBOL, and their importance to society. The Milestone for the invention of the computer, the Eniac is already there. This would be a companion.
Are the original buildings extant?
1 extant and 1 extinct - History of the buildings: The building at 3747 Ridge Avenue where the compiler was invented has a cyclone fence around it and is unavailable to the public today. I personally spoke with the owners, and they do not want the milestone on their property. The second building at 1900 Alleghany Avenue does not exist today. The reason why I now about this building is one of our IEEE Board members, Marvin Weinstein, worked for Sperry Rand when Grace was Director of Programing in the sixties. He provided me with the address. The location is now a drug rehab medical center with an apartment complex to house the clients.
Details of the plaque mounting:
The Compiler Milestone will be on a wall in the lobby of the University of Pennsylvania the Moore Engineering School. The milestone plaques come with four mounting holes in the back. There are four at the corners: 2.75 inches/6.5 cm in from the corners (as measured on the diagonal) or 1.95 inches/4.596cm in from the edges. The holes are threaded to take the studs. Please see https://ieeemilestones.ethw.org/Plaque_mounting_details
How is the site protected/secured, and in what ways is it accessible to the public?
It is a secure location by security cameras and campus security guards. It is open seven days a week.
Who is the present owner of the site(s)?
University of Pennsylvania
What is the historical significance of the work (its technological, scientific, or social importance)? If personal names are included in citation, include justification here. (see section 6 of Milestone Guidelines)
The historical significance of the compiler is the importance of how it affected the modern computer: A compiler is a computer program that translates computer code written in mathematical programming into a computer language such as English. The compiler is primarily used for programs that translate source code from a high-level programming language to a lower-level language to create an executable program.[3] The invention of the compiler led to the Information Age and the beginning of the IT industry.
The justification for Grace Murray Hopper's name being in the citation is as follows: Hopper was one of the first programmers of the Harvard Mark I computer. She was a pioneer of computer programming and invented and coined the term compiler. She popularized the idea of machine-independent programming languages, which led to the development of COBOL Grace Murray Hopper developed the implementation of standards for testing computer systems and components, most significantly for early programming languages such as FORTRAN and COBOL. She coined the expression computer “Bug”. Grace Murray Hopper retired from the Navy as Rear Admiral. She worked on many teams and programs. She was often referred to as “Amazing Grace”. We need to honor this woman mathematician, inventor, and computer programmer.
[3] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_compiler_construction
What obstacles (technical, political, geographic) needed to be overcome?
The biggest obstacle that needed to be overcome was convincing the management and the computer department that the Compiler would work technically. The politics and challenges of convincing the upper management audience took two years for acceptance. “I had a running compiler, and nobody would touch it… they carefully told me computers could only do arithmetic. They could not do programs” said Grace Hopper.[4]
[4] https://flatironschool.com/blog/code-history-lesson-grace-hopper
What features set this work apart from similar achievements?
The feature that set the compiler apart from similar achievements is it was the missing link in computer programming. The compiler was an executable program that translated source code into a binary form known as object code or machine code for the first time.
[5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_compiler_construction
Supporting texts and citations to establish the dates, location, and importance of the achievement: Minimum of five (5), but as many as needed to support the milestone, such as patents, contemporary newspaper articles, journal articles, or chapters in scholarly books. 'Scholarly' is defined as peer-reviewed, with references, and published. You must supply the texts or excerpts themselves, not just the references. At least one of the references must be from a scholarly book or journal article. All supporting materials must be in English, or accompanied by an English translation.
https://news.yale.edu/2017/02/10/grace-murray-hopper-1906-1992-legacy-innovation-and-service
https://www.computer.org/profiles/grace-hopper
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_Hopper
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Grace-Hopper
https://www.computer.org/csdl/magazine/it/2015/01/mit2015010062/13rRUxCitFF (IEEE)
Supporting materials (supported formats: GIF, JPEG, PNG, PDF, DOC): All supporting materials must be in English, or if not in English, accompanied by an English translation. You must supply the texts or excerpts themselves, not just the references. For documents that are copyright-encumbered, or which you do not have rights to post, email the documents themselves to ieee-history@ieee.org. Please see the Milestone Program Guidelines for more information.
Images of Dr. Grace M. Hopper can be found at https://www.hagley.org/research/news/hagley-vault/we-re-posting-ca-1967-photograph-today-recognition-115th-anniversary, https://www.hagley.org/research/news/hagley-vault/were-posting-photograph-june-1957-today The two letters that are required were forwarded to Robert Colburn, Research Coordinator
Please email a jpeg or PDF a letter in English, or with English translation, from the site owner(s) giving permission to place IEEE milestone plaque on the property, and a letter (or forwarded email) from the appropriate Section Chair supporting the Milestone application to ieee-history@ieee.org with the subject line "Attention: Milestone Administrator." Note that there are multiple texts of the letter depending on whether an IEEE organizational unit other than the section will be paying for the plaque(s).
Please recommend reviewers by emailing their names and email addresses to ieee-history@ieee.org. Please include the docket number and brief title of your proposal in the subject line of all emails.
