Question:
Why are computer defects called "bugs"?

The Answer:

As the Y2K bug continues to make headlines, we should take
a moment to consider a computer pioneer who had bugs of a
different sort to deal with.

In 1943, Navy officer Grace Hopper found a glitch in her
computer. After investigating, she discovered the system
had a bug--a real one. Turns out a moth made its way into
Hopper's computer.

Though the word "bug" has meant fault or defect since as
far back as the 1870's, Hopper's story is credited with
making it the synonym of choice in the computer industry.
Now if only the Y2K bug was as easy to eliminate as
Hopper's bug.

(Main Source: Time Magazine, August 25, 1986)

More Hopper Trivia

Ms. Hopper and her colleagues taped the moth in their
logbook, citing it as "the first actual case of bug being
found". The book and the moth are now on display in the
Smithsonian Museum.

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