[SIGCIS-Members] Request for biographies

Deborah Douglas ddouglas at mit.edu
Thu Sep 3 11:57:45 PDT 2020


The members of this list has given careful/critical readings of many of the popular biographies.  It would be worth reading those archived notes.

Beyond computing, Michael Neufield’s biography of Wernher von Braun, “Dreamer of Space, Engineer of War” coupled with his early monograph, “The Rocket and the Reich” offer an excellent example of how a biography/monograph combination can really illuminate a reader/researcher’s understanding.

Debbie Douglas

On Sep 3, 2020, at 2:12 PM, Heyck, Hunter <hheyck at ou.edu<mailto:hheyck at ou.edu>> wrote:

These are very good suggestions. If a bit of self-promotion isn’t too crass 😊, I’m rather fond of my biography of Herbert Simon: Herbert A. Simon: the bounds of reason in modern America, JHU Press 2005.

It’s a fair bit older, but I’ve always liked Steven Heims’ John von Neumann and Norbert Wiener: From Mathematics to the Technologies of Life and Death(MIT Press, 1980). Unusual in that it’s a dual biography, but quite good.

Best,
--Hunter

--
Dr. Hunter Heyck
Professor and Chair, Department of the History of Science
University of Oklahoma
601 Elm St, PHSC 601
Norman, OK 73019-0315
405-556-1145 (M)
<image001.jpg>

From: Members <members-bounces at lists.sigcis.org<mailto:members-bounces at lists.sigcis.org>> on behalf of Marc Weber <marc at webhistory.org<mailto:marc at webhistory.org>>
Date: Thursday, September 3, 2020 at 12:48 PM
To: Alex Ramirez <AlexRamirez at CUNET.CARLETON.CA<mailto:AlexRamirez at CUNET.CARLETON.CA>>
Cc: members <members at sigcis.org<mailto:members at sigcis.org>>
Subject: Re: [SIGCIS-Members] Request for biographies

I’ve just started reading Endless Frontier and so far it is truly excellent. Zachary more recently published a collection of Bush’s papers to go with it.
Best, Marc

Marc Weber<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.computerhistory.org_staff_Marc-2CWeber_&d=DwMFaQ&c=qKdtBuuu6dQK9MsRUVJ2DPXW6oayO8fu4TfEHS8sGNk&r=BM0VlL6M9YOYuQiIBopsWA&m=3IwJOQ7m_7hYjnqa4Sg9oLMmiMyehXTbR7JAFpr5lOo&s=nPiDLCWJejndOxjjsTbiRxFyaAdA9MuTwMO3Lx5HSVw&e=>  |   marc at webhistory.org<mailto:marc at webhistory.org>  |   +1 415 282 6868 | Zoom 901 292 1071
Curatorial Director, Internet History Program
Computer History Museum, 1401 N Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View CA 94043
computerhistory.org/nethistory<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__computerhistory.org_nethistory&d=DwMFaQ&c=qKdtBuuu6dQK9MsRUVJ2DPXW6oayO8fu4TfEHS8sGNk&r=BM0VlL6M9YOYuQiIBopsWA&m=3IwJOQ7m_7hYjnqa4Sg9oLMmiMyehXTbR7JAFpr5lOo&s=ZX9kenW3ovZ-rhZkZ9lmzT0YepDOpLC0Iz1UWRjduzY&e=>  |  Co-founder, Web History Center and Project

On Sep 3, 2020, at 10:16, Alex Ramirez <AlexRamirez at CUNET.CARLETON.CA<mailto:AlexRamirez at CUNET.CARLETON.CA>> wrote:

Troy,

I constantly refer to

Zachary, G. P. (1999). Endless Frontier: Vannevar Bush, Engineer of the American Century, Cambridge, MA: MIT Press

Alex

From: Members <members-bounces at lists.sigcis.org<mailto:members-bounces at lists.sigcis.org>> On Behalf Of Troy Astarte
Sent: September 3, 2020 7:31 AM
To: members <members at sigcis.org<mailto:members at sigcis.org>>
Subject: [SIGCIS-Members] Request for biographies

[External Email]

Dear SIG-CIS,

What is your favourite biography of a scientist or mathematician? I’m particularly interested in modern subjects and those who worked in computing/computer science. Ideally the book would cover the subject’s work in a reasonable level of technical detail as well as their life and the broader context in which they lived and worked.

I ask because I am considering applying for funding for an essentially biographical project on a computer scientist and I would like to read some (more) biographies first.

Best,

Troy Astarte

School of Computing
Newcastle University

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Marc Weber<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__www.computerhistory.org_staff_Marc-2CWeber_&d=DwMFaQ&c=qKdtBuuu6dQK9MsRUVJ2DPXW6oayO8fu4TfEHS8sGNk&r=BM0VlL6M9YOYuQiIBopsWA&m=3IwJOQ7m_7hYjnqa4Sg9oLMmiMyehXTbR7JAFpr5lOo&s=nPiDLCWJejndOxjjsTbiRxFyaAdA9MuTwMO3Lx5HSVw&e=>  |   marc at webhistory.org<mailto:marc at webhistory.org>  |   +1 415 282 6868 | Zoom 901 292 1071
Curatorial Director, Internet History Program
Computer History Museum, 1401 N Shoreline Blvd., Mountain View CA 94043
computerhistory.org/nethistory<https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=http-3A__computerhistory.org_nethistory&d=DwMFaQ&c=qKdtBuuu6dQK9MsRUVJ2DPXW6oayO8fu4TfEHS8sGNk&r=BM0VlL6M9YOYuQiIBopsWA&m=3IwJOQ7m_7hYjnqa4Sg9oLMmiMyehXTbR7JAFpr5lOo&s=ZX9kenW3ovZ-rhZkZ9lmzT0YepDOpLC0Iz1UWRjduzY&e=>  |  Co-founder, Web History Center and Project


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Deborah G. Douglas, PhD • Director of Collections and Curator of Science and Technology, MIT Museum; Research Associate, Program in Science, Technology, and Society • Room N51-209 • 265 Massachusetts Avenue • Cambridge, MA 02139-4307 • ddouglas at mit.edu<mailto:ddouglas at mit.edu> • 617-253-1766 telephone • 617-253-8994 facsimile • http://mitmuseum.mit.edu • she/her/hers





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