He soon grew bored with the subject, and transferred to the physics department. Mauchly's intelligence and abilities so impressed those in the department that he was offered a position in the physics doctoral program. Mauchly never finished his undergraduate degree. Instead her earned his Ph.D. in 1932, after writing a dissertation on the carbon monoxide molecule. While still a student, Mauchly married Mary Augusta Walzl on December 30, 1930. They had two sons, James and Sidney.
Saw Need for Computers
After graduation, Mauchly stayed at Johns Hopkins as a research assistant for a year, 1932-33. Some of his work there focused on calculating energy levels of the formaldehyde spectrum. Because the calculations took a long time to accomplish manually, Mauchly began thinking about the possibilities of automating functions.
In 1933, Mauchly was hired to head the physics department at Ursinus College in Collegeville, Pennsylvania. While this was not a prestigious position for Mauchly, it was the height of the Great Depression, and jobs were scarce. Mauchly was not just the head of the department, he was the only staff member. Because of this situation, Mauchly had many teaching responsibilities that could have severely limited his ability to conduct original research.
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