On this date in either 1945 or 1947 (depending on which history you believe), the first computer bug was discovered. In diagnosing malfunctions in the Mark II computer at Harvard, a technician tracked the problem down to a dead moth caught in the relays. The operators described the error and even taped the insect into the log. See a description of the events at Wikipedia, including a picture of the relevant section of the notebook. (Contrary to popular belief, Grace Hopper didn't actually discover the bug, but she was on the Mark II team and popularized the story.)
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Posted by johndanseven at September 9, 2005 09:03 AM