Tech Trailblazers: Can You Guess These Pioneering Women?

Who co-created the COBOL programming language?

Jean Bartik

Grace Hopper

Joan Ball

Karen Spärck Jones

Grace Hopper played a pivotal role in developing COBOL (Common Business-Oriented Language), one of the first high-level programming languages.

Which tech pioneer wrote the first user manual?

Ada Lovelace

Jean Bartik

Grace Hopper

Mary Wilkes

Mary Wilkes authored the first user manual for a computer, documenting how to operate the LINC computer, the first minicomputer.

Who is the inventor of frequency hopping?

Hedy Lamarr

Grace Hopper

Ada Lovelace

Radia Perlman

Hedy Lamarr co-invented the frequency hopping spread spectrum technology during World War II, which later became a basis for modern wireless communications technology.

Who was Apple’s first female board member?

Ginni Rometty

Andrea Jung

Meg Whitman

Susan Kare

Andrea Jung became the first woman to serve on Apple’s board in 2008. She is also known for her role as CEO of Avon Products.

Who developed the Smalltalk programming language which influenced the development of Apple’s Lisa and Macintosh computers?

Adele Goldberg

Elizabeth Feinler

Grace Hopper

Radia Perlman

Adele Goldberg was one of the developers of the Smalltalk language at Xerox PARC, which heavily influenced modern object-oriented programming languages and GUI development.

Who founded the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology?

Anita Borg

Ginni Rometty

Susan Wojcicki

Radia Perlman

Anita Borg founded the institute that bears her name, which advocates for the increased representation of women in technical fields.

Which woman helped develop the technology for spread spectrum communications?

Elizabeth Feinler

Grace Hopper

Ada Lovelace

Hedy Lamarr

Hedy Lamarr, together with George Antheil, developed a radio guidance system using spread spectrum and frequency hopping technology which contributed to the development of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.

Which woman played a pivotal role at the Stanford Research Institute, helping to develop the early internet?

Elizabeth Feinler

Megan Smith

Sheryl Sandberg

Susan Wojcicki

Elizabeth Feinler directed the Network Information Center at the Stanford Research Institute, which played a crucial role in the development of the early internet.

Who is the co-founder of Sun Microsystems?

Carol Bartz

Sheryl Sandberg

Vinod Khosla

Elizabeth Holmes

Carol Bartz, although not a co-founder, was a key figure at Sun Microsystems and later became the CEO of Autodesk and Yahoo.

Who was the first woman to receive a Ph.D. in computer science from MIT?

Kathleen Booth

Adele Goldberg

Carol Shaw

Barbara Liskov

Barbara Liskov earned her Ph.D. in computer science from MIT in 1968, pioneering work in programming languages and distributed systems.

Who invented the compiler that translated English terms into machine code?

Ada Lovelace

Grace Hopper

Hedy Lamarr

Elizabeth Feinler

Grace Hopper was a pioneering computer scientist who invented the first compiler for a computer programming language, which was a major step forward in making programming accessible.

Who led IBM as its first female CEO?

Ginni Rometty

Meg Whitman

Carol Bartz

Safra Catz

Ginni Rometty was the first woman to head IBM as CEO, president, and chairman, roles she took on from 2012 after a successful career at IBM.

Who was the first female engineer at Google?

Susan Wojcicki

Marissa Mayer

Ginni Rometty

Anne Wojcicki

Marissa Mayer was the first female engineer hired by Google in 1999 and played a vital role in developing key products like Google Maps and Gmail.

Who is known as the “Mother of the Internet”?

Radia Perlman

Sheryl Sandberg

Marissa Mayer

Megan Smith

Radia Perlman is credited with fundamental contributions to the Internet protocol suite, including her invention of the spanning-tree protocol (STP), which is essential for network bridge operation.

What did Erna Schneider Hoover invent?

Computerized telephone switching

STP protocol

Wi-Fi technology

Compiler for C++

Erna Schneider Hoover invented a computerized telephone switching method which revolutionized modern communication by eliminating the need for human operators.

Who is known for her work on the ENIAC computer?

Adele Goldberg

Jean Bartik

Betty Holberton

Radia Perlman

Jean Bartik was one of the original programmers of the ENIAC, the first general-purpose electronic digital computer.

Who developed the algorithm for the first computer program?

Grace Hopper

Ada Lovelace

Joan Clarke

Hedy Lamarr

Ada Lovelace is credited with creating the first algorithm intended to be carried out by Charles Babbage’s analytical engine, making her arguably the first computer programmer.

Who pioneered work on optical fiber communications?

Susan Kare

Carol Bartz

Shirley Ann Jackson

Elizabeth Feinler

Shirley Ann Jackson conducted breakthrough scientific research that enabled others to invent the portable fax, touch-tone telephone, solar cells, fiber optic cables, and the technology behind caller ID and call waiting.

Who is recognized for her leadership at Yahoo?

Carol Bartz

Marissa Mayer

Meg Whitman

Susan Wojcicki

Marissa Mayer served as the President and CEO of Yahoo, overseeing major initiatives that impacted the company’s direction during her tenure.

What did Frances Allen specialize in?

AI research

Database management

Compiler optimization

Networking protocols

Frances Allen was known for her work in optimizing compilers, making significant contributions to automatic program parallelization, which helps programs run faster.