A computer can encounter a bug without harboring any insects. But in 1947, in a Mark II family system at Harvard, technicians discover a moth stuck in a component.
The insect is removed and kept in the logbook. This little body stuck on a page becomes a famous image of computer history. It seems to provide a perfect origin to the vocabulary: a bug would have become a bug because we would have found one.
The end is less simple, and more interesting. The word was already used to refer to technical flaws before this episode. The insect did not invent the expression; it gave it an irresistible illustration. A documented pun ended up being taken for a birth certificate.
What we know
We must not attribute to this episode the invention of the word “bug”, nor affirm that Grace Hopper personally found the insect.
To go to the source
References consulted on September 20, 2026. Linked pages may be in another language.
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