Grace Hopper Quotes

Humans are allergic to change. They love to say, 'We've always done it this way.' I try to fight that. That's why I have a clock on my wall that runs counter-clockwise.

We're flooding people with information. We need to feed it through a processor. A human must turn information into intelligence or knowledge. We've tended to forget that no computer will ever ask a new question.

It's easier to ask forgiveness than it is to get permission.

There's something you learn in your first boot-camp, or training camp: If they put you down somewhere with nothing to do, go to sleep — you don't know when you'll get any more.

I had a running compiler and nobody would touch it. ... they carefully told me, computers could only do arithmetic; they could not do programs.

I've always been more interested in the future than in the past.

"Leadership is a two-way street, loyalty up and loyalty down."

(CBS 60 Minutes interview, March 6, 1983)

The most dangerous phrase in the language is we've always done

Unsourced: One accurate measurement is worth a thousand expert opinions.

To me programming is more than an important practical art. It is also a gigantic undertaking in the foundations of knowledge.

The most dangerous phrase in the language is 'We've always done it this way!'".

It is better to beg forgiveness, than ask permission.

If in doubt – do it.

The wonderful thing about standards is that there are so many of them to choose from.

Humans are allergic to change. They love to say, "We've always done it this way." I try to fight that. That's why I have a clock on my wall that runs counter-clockwise.