Re: Hypatia inventions

NetSurfer (netsurf@pixi.com)
Fri, 14 Mar 1997 05:41:38 -0000


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From: Eugene Leitl <Eugene.Leitl@lrz.uni-muenchen.de>
To: NetSurfer <netsurf@pixi.com>
Cc: extropians@extropy.org
Subject: Re: Hypatia inventions
Date: Wednesday, March 12, 1997 11:13 AM

On Wed, 12 Mar 1997, NetSurfer wrote:
> [...]
> She was, as you referenced, the first programmer, as she wrote about how
to

>Not to forget Grace Hopper (Gracehopper?), who ever found the first
>_true_ bug in her program. It is purported to have been a moth, though.

We should never forget Admiral "Amazing" Grace Hopper - and yes, I am told
the moth is still in the logbook at Anapolis (sp?) Their computer actually
used electromechanical relays! I do wish I had ever had the opportunity to
see her speak - I understand she was (among other things) an excellent
orator.

>According to SciAm, they build at least a part of it (or was it the Diff.
>E.?), using machined parts, at accuracy available at that time. It worked
>allright. One of the cyberpunks authors, dunno whether Sterling or
>Gibson, wrote a (purportedly) readable novel about an alternative
>Babbagian reality.

They actually completed the diff (using hand-machined parts) but the
complexity of the Anal. was beyond the machining ability of the time (too
many parts to keep aligned.)

>ciao,
>'gene

Aloha!