Encyclopedia of Computer Science and Technology

women and minorities in computing 515Wirth has received numerous honors, including theACM Turing Award (1984) and the IEEE Computer PioneerAward (1987).Further ReadingPescio, Carlo. “A Few Words with Niklaus Wirth.” SoftwareDevelopment, vol. 5, no. 6, June 1997. Available online. URL:http://www.eptacom.net/pubblicazioni/pub_eng/wirth.html.Accessed August 23, 2007.Wirth, Niklaus. Algorithms + Data Structures = Programs. EnglewoodCliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 1976.———, and Kathy Jensen. PASCAL User Manual and Report. 4thed. New York: Springer-Verlag, 1991.———. Project Oberon: The Design of an Operating System and Compiler.Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley, 1992.———. “Recollections about the Development of Pascal.” InBergin, Thomas J., and Richard G. Gibson, eds., History ofProgramming Languages-II, 97–111. New York: ACM Press;Reading, Mass.: Addison-Wesley, 1996.———. Systematic Programming: An Introduction. Reading, Mass.:Addison-Wesley, 1973.women and minorities in computingAlthough the development of computer science and technologyhas been an international effort, there is no doubt thatthe majority of contributors (particularly in the early years)were men—specifically white men. The interesting exceptionsinclude Charles Babbage’s collaborator Ada Lovelace,ENIAC’s first trained programmers—all women—and ofcourse Grace Hopper, whose COBOL revolutionized businesscomputing. Finally, the 2007 winner of one of thefield’s most prestigious honors, the ACM Turing Award, is awoman, compiler developer Frances E. Allen.Today women have gained prominent roles in all aspectsof computer science as well as some high-profile posts inbusiness (such as Carly Fiorina, former CEO of Hewlett-Packard, and Meg Whitman of eBay). However, the overallinvolvement of women in the higher echelons of computingremains relatively small.Educational surveys suggest that boys and girls start outwith roughly equal interest and involvement with computers,including basic courses in computer literacy and applications.However, a 2006 report from the College Boardfound that 59 percent of boys reported taking courses inprogramming, compared with 41 percent of girls. Further,the great majority of students taking advanced placementcomputer science exams are male.At the college level, women made gains in the percentageof bachelor’s degrees in the computer field, reaching 37percent by the mid-1980s. However, by 2005 that percentagehad declined to 22 percent. (However, women wereearning 34 percent of master’s degrees by 2001.) Further,the number of women working in information technologydeclined from 984,000 (28.9 percent) in 2000 to 908,000(26.2 percent) in 2006.The reasons for this decline are unclear, though somepossible causes that have been suggested include the effectsof the “dot-bust” and the perception that IT jobs were nolonger secure, the “geek” stereotype not appealing to youngwomen, and the availability of more attractive career paths.Jean Bartik (standing) and Betty Holberton answered a callfor “computers” during World War II. At the time, that was thename for a clerical person who performed calculations. But thesetwo computer pioneers, shown here at a reunion, would go on todevelop important programming techniques for the ENIAC andlater machines. (Courtesy of the Association for Womenin Computing)In terms of race or ethnicity, whites and Asians earn adisproportionate number of degrees in computing, althoughinterestingly, minority women tend to earn a higher percentagethan white women. Although minorities have beengradually increasing their participation in the computingfield, economic disadvantage (see digital divide) and pooreducational preparation continue to be obstacles for some.Efforts at ChangeA variety of programs have sought to interest women andminority students in computer programming and otherdigital careers. These can include the creation of nontraditionalprogramming environments such as Alice, whichallows students to create animated stories using scriptingand 3D graphics tools. (The theory behind this is that girlsare more interested in storytelling and character interaction,while traditional programming classes focused moreon “shoot ’em up” games and other things of more interestto boys.) There has also been a move away from emphasison “hard core” programming skills to a more broad-basedability to think about technology and its possible uses. (Asa result of this and a certain amount of affirmative action,Carnegie Mellon raised its percentage of women computerscience students from 8 percent to 40 percent.)African Americans and other minorities have also developeda number of organizations and programs designed