June 2009 - Members - lists.sigcis.org

Vacuum Tube Development Committee
by Evan Koblentz 09 Sep '10

09 Sep '10

Last week I visited Harvard's archives of the Radio Research Lab, and found some meeting minutes of the Vacuum Tube Development Committee (1943-1945 timeframe) .... I can't find much online that nicely summarizes this committee and its activity / purpose. Can someone here point me to a good overview?

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Another question - "Giant Brains"
by Evan Koblentz 31 Oct '09

31 Oct '09

Was the term "Giant Brains" already popular when Edmund Berkeley used it in his 1949 book title, or should he get credit for popularizing it? I'm mentioning the term in a footnote and want to be sure credit goes to the right source.

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Call For Papers - Interdisciplinary Essays on Science Fiction and Computers
by David Ferro 30 Jun '09

30 Jun '09

David Ferro and Eric Swedin (both at Weber State University and members of sigcis) are editing a volume for McFarland & Company with a working title of "Canticle for the Machine: Interdisciplinary Essays on Science Fiction and Computers." In this volume we are bringing together voices from numerous disciplines, such as literature studies, history, anthropology, sociology, psychology, economics, science and technology studies, and the other humanities and social science disciplines. In addition, we are bringing together voices from disciplines such as computer science, aeronautics, and physics, as well as pioneers in the computer industry. We are also looking to add the voices of some science fiction authors. The point of assembling these voices is to broadly explore the importance of science fiction as a body of literature that has, through various means, facilitated invention and discovery in computing. We also recognize that science fiction is not just stories and novels, but includes movies, television series, and graphic novels. Science fiction acts as a source of inspiration for invention and participation. It supplies metaphors and analogies. It facilitates communication within and outside a community of practitioners. It helps create world views and shape critical and reflective thinking. It plays a role in defining social relations and helps to determine who is inside and outside of the community of the creators of digital culture. It assists in imagining the implications of computing on society and ourselves, or, vice versa, the needs of a society that promotes computer development. Our intention is to gather those who are informed by experience and/or academic study, but who will communicate clearly across disciplinary boundaries. We are approaching this email list as some here have expressed an interest in science fiction and society. Please contact us via the contact information listed below. Currently we are looking for 6,000 word entries; however, we welcome email inquiries about possible essays of shorter length. The schedule for contributing to this work is as follows: ASAP: A response that you are interested. August 31, 2009: A 250 word abstract of the intended work November 30, 2009: Author First. February 28, 2010: Author Second. We look forward to hearing from you. Sincerely, David L. Ferro, PhD (Science and Technology Studies, Virginia Tech) Associate Professor of Computer Science at Weber State University dferro(a)weber.edu Eric G. Swedin, PhD (History of Science, Case Western Reserve) Associate Professor of Information Systems and Technologies at Weber State University eswedin(a)weber.edu or eswedin(a)gmail.com Physical address: Weber State University 2401 University Circle Weber State University Ogden, Utah 84408 -- David Ferro, Associate Professor in Computer Science and Chair of Faculty Senate, Weber State University, Ogden, Utah

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Reminder: SIGCIS Workshop Proposal Deadline is June 22
by Thomas Haigh 20 Jun '09

20 Jun '09

Hello everyone, We're all looking forward to the very first SIGCIS workshop, held on Sunday 18 at the conclusion of the SHOT conference. (As you start to make your travel arrangements, please do your best to stay for Sunday afternoon so you get the whole thing. We'll also have a little dinner Sunday evening for those who can stick around). It's still not too late to submit an abstract for a paper or session, a work in progress, or a dissertation proposal. But Monday is the day we shut down the submission system and get to work reviewing. So hurry, hurry, hurry to http://www.sigcis.org/?q=workshop09. Tom

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ACM History Committee fellowships awarded
by tmisa＠umn.edu 19 Jun '09

19 Jun '09

Dear SIGCIS colleagues, The Association for Computer Machinery's History Committee is delighted to announce the two winners of its inaugural short-term fellowship in ACM history: Irina Nikiforova, a Ph.D. student at Georgia Tech's School of History, Technology and Society, for her dissertation project entitled "ACM, Turing Prize Scientists, and their Web of Affiliations." Nikiforova will examine archival materials held at Stanford University, the University of Michigan, and the Charles Babbage Institute as well as online ACM materials concerning the Turing Award. Bernard Geoghegan, a Ph.D. student at Northwestern University and Bauhaus University--Weimar, for a specific project on "Staging the ACM Chess Championships" which will draw on archival materials presently in private hands. Geoghegan plans a journal article from this research as well as a museum exhibit. Each fellow will receive $2500 to support their project, which can be used for travel or other research expenses. An announcement of this year's (past) fellowship can be found at <http://history.acm.org/content.php?do=fellowship>. The ACM History Committee hopes to sponsor another round of fellowship support next year as well.

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Good books/articles on history of networking?
by Evan Koblentz 18 Jun '09

18 Jun '09

I'm looking for recommendations of good books/articles on the history of computer networking from before the ARPAnet era.

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Update -- Evans Signal Lab and computer development
by Evan Koblentz 17 Jun '09

17 Jun '09

Here's something I think my fellow SIGCIS members will find interesting. At the D.C. conference in 2007 I talked about the InfoAge Science Center, which was a Marconi station before W.W. I, a Navy comms station during W.W. I, an Army Signal Corp R&D lab during and after W.W. II, and shut down in the late 1990s. Recently we at InfoAge made progress in understanding what happened here applicable to computer development. The site is already noteworthy for its Marconi-era achievements and its many radar and communications achievements, but until very recently its role in computer development was severely understated. Last night I made a simple poster outlining this work. It's intended for lay audiences, but it might also open some eyes here in SIGCIS. Feedback encouraged. Of course I'd be happy to provide more detail about each bullet point. http://snarc.net/posters/10_summary-poster.pdf - Evan

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Re: [SIGCIS-Members] Members Digest, Vol 16, Issue 6
by Sue Thomas 16 Jun '09

16 Jun '09

This attachment didn't work - please could you resend or just send the URL? thanks 2009/6/16 <members-request(a)sigcis.org>: > Send Members mailing list submissions to > members(a)sigcis.org > > To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit > http://sigcis.org/mailman/listinfo/members > or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to > members-request(a)sigcis.org > > You can reach the person managing the list at > members-owner(a)sigcis.org > > When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific > than "Re: Contents of Members digest..." > > > Today's Topics: > > 1. IFIP World Computer Congress, Call for Papers (Ceruzzi, Paul) > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > Message: 1 > Date: Tue, 16 Jun 2009 10:35:24 -0400 > From: "Ceruzzi, Paul" <CeruzziP(a)si.edu> > Subject: [SIGCIS-Members] IFIP World Computer Congress, Call for > Papers > To: <members(a)sigcis.org> > Message-ID: > <39E881CB59D4454295FDDDA5605EE7FC01762670(a)SI-ECL01.US.SINET.SI.EDU> > Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii" > > I see that the Call for Papers is just under the 100 KB limit for > permissible attachments to this List, so I am attaching it here. If you > have trouble opening the attachment, send me an e-mail. > > Paul E. Ceruzzi > National Air & Space Museum > MRC 311; PO Box 37012 > Washington, DC 20013-7012 > 202-633-2414 > <http://www.nasm.si.edu/staffDetail.cfm?staffID=24> > >

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IFIP World Computer Congress, Call for Papers
by Ceruzzi, Paul 16 Jun '09

16 Jun '09

I see that the Call for Papers is just under the 100 KB limit for permissible attachments to this List, so I am attaching it here. If you have trouble opening the attachment, send me an e-mail. Paul E. Ceruzzi National Air & Space Museum MRC 311; PO Box 37012 Washington, DC 20013-7012 202-633-2414 <http://www.nasm.si.edu/staffDetail.cfm?staffID=24>

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Talk by Peter Galison, Paris, June 13th 2009
by Sandra Mols 09 Jun '09

09 Jun '09

Apologies for crossposting Please find below the annoucement of a conference by Peter Galison, this Saturday 13th of June, in Paris. For further information, please refer to Lena Soler (l_soler(a)club-internet.fr) Best regards, Sandra Mols ----------------- Peter Galison, Harvard University, is giving a conference in Paris entitled "Tacit Knowledge and Scientific Sight" this Saturday 13th of June 2009, 10h-12h. Ths talk will take place at the Institut d'Histoire et de Philosophie des Sciences et des Techniques (IHPST), grande salle, 13 rue du four, Paris. Abstract available at: http://poincare.univ-nancy2.fr/digitalAssets/51621_Galison-13mai09-Invitati…

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