Hi, my name is Kimberly Blessing. I'm a computer scientist, Web developer, standards evangelist, feminist, and geek. This is where I write about life, the Web, technology, women's issues, and whatever else comes to mind.
Fran Allen to receive Turing Award
Woo hoo! From the latest ACM Press Release (emphasis mine):
ACM, the Association for Computing Machinery, has named Frances E. Allen the recipient of the 2006 A.M. Turing Award for contributions that fundamentally improved the performance of computer programs in solving problems, and accelerated the use of high performance computing. This award marks the first time that a woman has received this honor. The Turing Award, first presented in 1966, and named for British mathematician Alan M. Turing, is widely considered the “Nobel Prize in Computing.” It carries a $100,000 prize, with financial support provided by Intel Corporation.
Congratulations, Fran! (See my pictures of Fran at GHC 2004.)
Over at USA Today, Kevin Maney has a great article on Fran. He tells her story and comments on the lack of women in technology fields at the same time.
Maney writes, “Allen, now retired from IBM Research, started in computing in 1957 — a time when tech companies, believe it or not, seemed like wide-open and exciting places for women to build careers.” This echoes the sentiments expressed to me by Milly Koss last year, when she told me the story of how she was hired by Eckert-Mauchley just after getting engaged (typically a death knoll for a woman trying to start a career in the 50’s).
I love how Maney confronts the hype around girls and women not being suited for math and science — head on. “First of all, it’s ridiculous to suggest that girls are less predisposed to math and science. Allen is not a freak of nature. Instead, something happened to the technology profession — and to public attitudes about it — to scare off girls.” I couldn’t agree more.
I remember first learning about Fran Allen, back when I was an undergrad. (Deepak encouraged us to learn about the history of computer science and, in particular, about the role of women in its history.) Ever since, she’s been a role model to me, and I know she’s been a role model and mentor to many other women as well. I’m so excited for her to receive this award, not only because it acknowledges her valuable contributions and dedication to the field, but also because it will make her story better known to scores of people (especially young women) considering a career in computing.
