We’ve all heard about the statistics – women who code account for barely a quarter of the total number of individuals engaged in the field. Nevertheless, women have often been pioneers in the ever-evolving realm of Web 2.0, altering how we interact online.
A diverse workforce is more productive, which is why the world needs more and more women who code. Gender equality has become non-negotiable in all industries, and the world of computers and Artificial Intelligence (AI) is no exception.
Women must be equal participants in inventing algorithms, setting research agendas, and building apps powered by data science and AI because digital technologies are transforming the way we live our lives.
Top 5 Women who Code and May Inspire you to Pursue Coding
1. Leah Culver
Culver, 25, is the principal developer and co-founder of Pownce, a social networking site that allows people to rapidly and efficiently interchange huge media, including files, movies, and images, without crashing their systems. Pownce’s work is now being emulated by companies like Twitter’s photo-sharing sites TwitPic and Facebook.
Culver studied at the University of Minnesota – art major – but she discovered her purpose in a mandatory programming class. She claimed she did not know anything about programming back then. She worked at iLoop Mobile and Instructables, two Bay Area companies, after graduating with a Computer Science degree in 2006, before opting to create her own company. She created Pownce from the ground up using the Python programming language.
You can never be too young to start your own business. Your website can be relatively inexpensive, especially if you write software. “As a coder, starting your own business is simple; you design a website and get people interested in it,” she says. Culver depended on cash from family and friends instead of venture capital.
2. Margaret Hamilton
Margaret Hamilton is a writer who lives in the United States. When the Apollo Guide Computer (AGC) code was written, Margaret Hamilton was the project director of software engineering. Programmers had to start from scratch while developing it for the Apollo 11 mission at the MIT Instrumentation Laboratory.
The team wrote the code for the first portable computer. Their work enabled the first moon landing and gave birth to a new industry. Hamilton honed her skills in systems programming.
3. Ada Lovelace
Ada Lovelace was a Victorian mathematician and the daughter of British poet Lord Byron. She collaborated on calculating machines with Charles Babbage, who dubbed her the “enchantress of numbers.”
She is widely regarded as the creator of computing science and the world’s first computer programmer, even though few women studied science or math at that time. According to the British Science Museum, by realizing the ability of calculating machines to “manipulate symbols rather than just numbers”, she foresaw contemporary computers a century in advance.
Her notes on a translation of an Italian description of the machine include what is thought to be the world’s first machine-processing algorithm. She also mentioned that such a device might be used to create visuals or music.
4. Katheryn Hodgen
BlondieBytes is managed by Kathryn Hodge, a programmer who is recognized for her in-depth and frequently funny Medium tutorials. While her Instagram is the greatest place to keep up with her latest initiatives, you won’t want to miss her upcoming podcast, which aims to make computer science more approachable to everyone. Kathryn is a strong supporter of clean and functional code and eye-catching design.
5. Caterina Fake
Fake was one of the pioneers of the site-based photo-sharing paradigm and was a co-founder of Flickr (now owned by Yahoo). Before Flickr, sending photos as email attachments was the only way to share them. Individuals and businesses alike now use the site as a photo storage facility.
Fake earned a BA in English from Vassar College. Her first employment online was as a lead designer for Organic Online, a web development firm where she worked on Fortune 500 company websites. She went on to work as an art director for Salon.com before becoming the creative director of Yellowball, an online platform that allows people to collaborate on tales and animations. In 2004, she and her husband, Stewart Butterfield, founded Flickr.
Top 3 Reasons Why More Women are Required in Technology Advancement
In certain ways, it is true that the IT industry employs fewer women than men. You will see very few women who code and very few women who make or desire to make a career in Machine Learning. It could be due to a dearth of female role models in the tech industry, which could lead to a lack of motivation and support.
Other factors could include gender stereotypes, such as the misconception that men are better at arithmetic and logic than girls, preventing them from exploring and participating fully in this tech field. However, compared to the previous decade, we can now see that the trend is changing, as more and more women express interest and enthusiasm in the field.
It makes sense to care about the gender balance in your tech team not only from an equality standpoint but also from a business aspect. With a rising number of women graduating from scientific, math, and technology programs, now is the moment to think of diversity as a business imperative rather than a checkbox exercise.
Software development is an excellent career choice for women. It is one of the unconventional careers that break gender stereotypes. Aside from helping the world become a better place, the pay in this sector is also worth considering. There are self-taught women who code that are doing well.
Career Counseling – Follow the Correct Career Path
If you can’t afford to pay for instructions, you can learn it yourself. A simple Google search for “how to write software” will get you free access to materials. You’re already on the right track if you’re familiar with several software development approaches for actualizing projects. You can also take career counseling online for in-depth knowledge in this field.
We can help you navigate career paths and courses. Visit our website and book a counseling session now!
