Out of Mind
July 3, 2019 6:19 AM   Subscribe

The Hidden Heroines of Chaos - "Two women programmers played a pivotal role in the birth of chaos theory. Their previously untold story illustrates the changing status of computation in science."

Three Created a Fertility Revolution With I.V.F., but One, a Woman, Went Unrecognized - "Newly released papers show that Robert Edwards, who won a Nobel Prize, tried in vain to have Jean Purdy recognized as an equal partner in the breakthrough."
posted by kliuless (4 comments total) 26 users marked this as a favorite
 
Is there anything that Margaret Hamilton can't do?
posted by scruss at 8:06 AM on July 3, 2019 [3 favorites]


See over a printout of her Apollo programming without a stepstool?
posted by LizardBreath at 8:15 AM on July 3, 2019 [2 favorites]


Is there anything that Margaret Hamilton can't do?

No. Reading this, I learned she'd patch code --in binary -- on papertape using cellophane tape and a pencil.
Another time, frustrated by all the things that had to be done to make another run after fixing an error, she devised a way to bypass the computer’s clunky debugging process. To Lorenz’s delight, Hamilton would take the paper tape that fed the machine, roll it out the length of the hallway, and edit the binary code with a sharp pencil. “I’d poke holes for ones, and I’d cover up with Scotch tape the others,”
posted by mikelieman at 8:54 AM on July 3, 2019 [5 favorites]


Today, many programmers leave science not because their role isn’t appreciated, but because coding is better compensated in industry, said Alyssa Goodman, an astronomer at Harvard University

Allow me to assure you, many programmers do also leave science because their role isn’t appreciated. I’ve heard “I’m never working with scientists again” from multiple senior programmers this year. There doesn’t seem to be a way to get scientists to value disciplines outside their own.
posted by cowcowgrasstree at 11:46 AM on July 3, 2019 [5 favorites]


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