We’ve all heard of the term ‘bug’ concerning our general day to day and also technology, but have you ever wondered why glitches in different kinds of software are called bugs?
“First actual case of bug being found”
While people were already using ‘bug’ to describe errors in performance before, its use today stems from a group recording the world’s first computer bug on 9th September 1947. This incident drew attention due to Grace Hopper, an American mathematician and rear admiral in the U.S. Navy who was a pioneer of computer programming. A group of Harvard University engineers and computer scientists were having trouble with their computer, and when they opened it, they discovered a bug – literally.
Nestled within the hardware was a moth that had been affecting the computer’s performance. The group noted the incident and kept the moth itself in a logbook, adding a note reading: “First actual case of bug being found”
So, next time you find yourself with a bug on your computer – double check for any moths (or if you’re anything like me, run as fast as you can)!
Featured image: Photo by Ilya Pavlov on Unsplash
Purplexed Science 
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