Apollo code developer Margaret Hamilton receives Presidential Medal of Freedom | MIT News
▻http://news.mit.edu/2016/apollo-code-developer-margaret-hamilton-receives-presidential-medal-of-fre
Margaret H. Hamilton, a pioneering computer scientist and former head of the Software Engineering Division of MIT’s Instrumentation Laboratory who led the development of on-board flight software for NASA’s Apollo moon missions, has been awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Hamilton, who also spent time as a computer scientist at MIT Lincoln Laboratory before starting her own software company, was honored for her contributions “to concepts of asynchronous software, priority scheduling and priority displays, and human-in-the-loop decision capability, which set the foundation for modern, ultra-reliable software design and engineering.”
The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the nation’s highest civilian honor, presented by the sitting president to individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors.