type__error’s avatartype__error’s Twitter Archive—№ 13,732

    1. Something good I read recently: Proving Ground by Kathy Kleiman. It’s about the ENIAC 6, a group of 6 women who were instrumental in building the world’s first electronic supercomputer. uk.bookshop.org/books/proving-ground-the-untold-story-of-the-six-women-who-programmed-the-world-s-first-modern-computer-9781787388628/9781787388628 (Hurst kindly sent me a preview copy for review!)
      OpenGraph image for uk.bookshop.org/books/proving-ground-the-untold-story-of-the-six-women-who-programmed-the-world-s-first-modern-computer-9781787388628/9781787388628
  1. …in reply to @type__error
    ENIAC was devised and built during WWII to efficiently calculate the trajectory of missiles, something that had long been done manually using mechanical calculators and would take people days to calculate. The ENIAC 6 programmed it, working with little to no documentation.
    1. …in reply to @type__error
      Typically they were left out of the fanfare around ENIAC’s launch and, subsequently, the history books. This book does them the justice they deserve, and tells each of their stories. It was a great read!
      1. …in reply to @type__error
        The ENIAC 6 were Betty Jean Jennings Bartik, Ruth Lichterman Teitelbaum, Kathleen McNulty Mauchly Antonelli, Frances Bilas Spence, Marlyn Wescoff Meltzer and Betty Snyder Holberton.