Charlotte Mooers; helped users navigate early e-mail systems
Science became a defining force for Charlotte Davis Mooers during her childhood in Washington, D.C., where she was brought up by two technical writers.
''She was a very intellectually curious person," said Mrs. Mooers's daughter Helen S. Solorzano, of Cambridge.
Mrs. Mooers, a retired Cambridge science writer who was considered an expert on two of the earliest e-mail systems in the 1970s, died at the Courtyard Nursing Care Center in Medford on March 17 from complications of dementia. She was 80.
Mrs. Mooers was heavily influenced by her parents' mutual love of science, her daughter said.
Following her graduation in 1941 from Central High School in Washington, D.C., she married Calvin N. Mooers, a US Naval Ordnance Laboratory mathematician who was one of the first computer scientists.
The couple moved in 1945 to Cambridge, where they lived until his death in 1994.
Following her graduation in 1948 from Simmons College, Mrs. Mooers worked as a technical writer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and for her husband's firm, the now defunct Rockford Research in Cambridge, which performed some of the earliest studies on artificial intelligence and computer science.
''She was very involved with the Cambridge science community and AI [artificial intelligence] scene," said her daughter Edith A. Mooers, of Melrose. ''She was very engaged with other people . . . she was an excellent mentor for a number of people."
Mrs. Mooers took time off to bring up her two daughters in the 1960s and returned to work as a technical writer with Bolt, Beranek & Newman of Cambridge, the firm that played a major role in developing the first computer network and e-mail system, a precursor to today's Internet.
''At that point, the computer networks were mostly based out of universities and research centers," Solorzano said. ''Her company was trying to piece it all together."
While at Bolt, Beranek & Newman, Mrs. Mooers worked as postmaster on two networks, a position that made her an international resource for early e-mail users having trouble navigating the new technology.
She documented her work with various e-mail systems at Bolt, Beranek & Newman and wrote user manuals on early e-mail programs.
Mrs. Mooers also kept a running log of Internet growth through an electronic newsletter she maintained for some of the earliest e-mail users.
''Charlotte was inserted firmly between the anvil and the hammer of a brand-new network," wrote Michael O'Brien, a fellow computer engineer who worked with Mrs. Mooers on some of her projects, in a recent e-mail to her family. ''I daresay that in some subtle, and some not-so-subtle ways, the Internet is a different place because of Charlotte."
Solorzano said her mother's love of science wasn't restricted to her work.
''She was into dinosaurs and geometric shapes at different points," she said. ''I remember her making intricate geometric shapes out of cardboard for literally hours on end."
Solorzano also recalled her mother taking science into the kitchen.
''She got really interested in baking bread," she said. ''And then started testing different kinds of wheat to see which had the most gluten. She was always teaching us things like that."
Edith Mooers said her decision to become a mathematician was influenced by her mother's love of science. ''She was a very strong push for both of us to do well," she said.
When she wasn't working, Mrs. Mooers enjoyed spending time with her family in Hancock, N.H., where they frequently hosted ''mushroom walks" for the Boston Mycological Club.
She also was an active conservationist involved at the Harris Center for Conservation Education in New Hampshire.
Besides her daughters, Mrs. Mooers leaves her brother, Miles Davis of Baltimore, and two grandchildren.
A memorial service has been planned for April 30 at 11 a.m. at the Mount Auburn Cemetery Bigalow Chapel in Cambridge. Burial is planned in Hancock, N.H. 