December 2019 - Members - lists.sigcis.org

Re: [SIGCIS-Members] Konrad Zuse's 1936 patent - German text?
by Brian Randell 24 Sep '20

24 Sep '20

Hi Mark: I have a copy of the original 1936 Zuse patent application that I had translated into English for my Origins book. (It took some finding - some of my Zemanek documents had strayed into the middle of the Zuse documents, and so had obscured them! :-) It is a type-written document, on the letterhead of Zuse’s patent attorney Dr.-Ing. Bruno Wolf, Berlin Charlottenberg 5, Kantstrasse 85, dated 9.4.36 (i.e. 9 April 1936). It is some twenty or so pages in length. However I should warn you that some of the pages are barely legible (though could probably be deciphered by someone who knows German - which I don’t). I could scan this document for you if you wish. (I have about two inches thick of documents about Zuse’s work, including a number of patents and patent applications, some pre-war, immediately some post-war, together with several typescripts from him. My plan is that this material will be added to the archive of my files held in the Special Collections section of Newcastle University Library. This already holds all the extensive correspondence that I was involved in while compiling Origins.) Cheers Brian On 24 Jan 2017, at 10:58, Mark Priestley <m.priestley(a)gmail.com<mailto:m.priestley@gmail.com>> wrote: Dear list, Zuse's 1936 patent "Method for Automatic Execution of Calculations with the Aid of Computers" is reprinted in Brian Randell's "Origins of Digital Computers" collections. Does anyone know if/where I can get hold of the German original? Thanks in advance. Mark _______________________________________________ This email is relayed from members at sigcis.org<http://sigcis.org>, the email discussion list of SHOT SIGCIS. Opinions expressed here are those of the member posting and are not reviewed, edited, or endorsed by SIGCIS. The list archives are at http://lists.sigcis.org/pipermail/members-sigcis.org/ and you can change your subscription options at http://lists.sigcis.org/listinfo.cgi/members-sigcis.org -- School of Computing Science, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 7RU, UK EMAIL = Brian.Randell(a)ncl.ac.uk<mailto:Brian.Randell@ncl.ac.uk> PHONE = +44 191 208 7923 FAX = +44 191 208 8232 URL = http://www.ncl.ac.uk/computing/people/profile/brianrandell.html

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2019 BSHS Ayrton Prize for digital engagement: nominations open
by James Sumner 04 Jan '20

04 Jan '20

Of likely interest to some listmembers... JS The British Society for the History of Science’s Outreach and Engagement Committee <https://www.bshs.org.uk/category/outreach-and-education> is delighted to invite nominations to the *BSHS Ayrton Prize 2019.* This prize is awarded once every two years to recognise outstanding digital engagement in the history of science, technology and medicine (HSTM). We interpret the term “digital engagement” broadly to include: •publicly accessible websites, or clearly defined contributions to existing web-based projects •podcasts and audio or video projects created for online delivery •online forums for public dialogue and discussion •social media initiatives (the nomination should be for a well-defined and publicly identifiable campaign or series of activities, rather than a general engagement presence) •smartphone apps •citizen science-style public engagement projects delivered online •virtual/augmented reality environments •simulations and models based on historical sources or data •projects using digital methods to make source materials more accessible to a wider audience (for example, 3D imaging of historical objects) •research projects which apply digital humanities approaches to HSTM sources or metadata, provided they have a public engagement element •digital tools and utilities to aid the work of public engagement professionals. If you are interested in nominating a project which seems to fall outside these categories, please contact the organisers for clarification. To be eligible, entries should •have been created or updated with substantial new content within the last two years •directly or indirectly support engagement or dialogue between specialists in the HSTM community and non-specialists •Reflect current best practice in both HSTM and digital engagement. *Judging* The projects will be evaluated using the following criteria: •Does the project reflect current scholarship in HSTM? •Does the project display good digital design principles? Is it easily navigable and accessible? •Is it innovative in its technical and/or scholarly approach? •Does it make effective use of the medium? •Is the content accurate and, where appropriate, supported by appropriate references to scholarly sources or further material? •Is it useful to HSTM practitioners and/or is it informative and interesting to public audiences? •Are there clear and feasible plans to secure the longer-term future of the project? *Entering* Nominations should come from representatives of the projects themselves. If you feel that a project you did not work on directly should be nominated, please encourage the project developers/managers to apply. Entrants should complete the short form available at https://www.bshs.org.uk/ayrton-prize-2019-nominations-open and send it to ayrton(a)bshs.org.uk <mailto:ayrton@bshs.org.uk>. All queries should also be sent to this address. The closing date for entries is *Monday 6 January 2020.*

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CSHPS 2020 call for abstracts (fwd)
by Allan Olley 26 Dec '19

26 Dec '19

Hello, This is a very late announcement apologies for my tardiness. The Canadian Society for the History and Philosophy of Science holds its annual meeting from May 30th-June 1st, 2020 at the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario as part of a larger event the Congress of the Humanities and Social Science. The deadline for abstracts of proposed talks is January 10th, 2020. In this case history and philosophy of science includes technology computing. I have presented work there myself. I am planning to submit an abstract for this year's annual meeting. Perhaps others on this list will find it an appropriate venue. I am the volunteer webmaster for the society. -- Yours Truly, Allan Olley, PhD http://individual.utoronto.ca/fofound/ *With apologies for cross-posting* (See http://www.yorku.ca/cshps1/meeting.html) Call for Abstracts / Appel à contributions CSHPS Annual Conference / Congrès annuel de la SCHPS London, ON, May 30-June 1, 2020 Proposals due January 10th, 2020 / Date limite de soumission 10 janvier 2020 [La version française suit] The Canadian Society for the History and Philosophy of Science (CSHPS) is holding its annual conference as part of the Congress of the Humanities and Social Sciences in London, ON, May 30-June 1, 2020 (http://www.yorku.ca/cshps1/meeting.html) The Program Committee invites scholars working on the history and philosophy of science to submit abstracts for individual papers or proposals for sessions (typically 3 papers). We particularly encourage scholars to engage with the theme for Congress 2020 – “Bridging Divides: Confronting Colonialism and Anti-Black Racism”. Unrelated topics and themes are also welcome. · Meeting languages: The CSHPS is a bilingual society. Individual papers may be given in English or French, but efforts to broaden participation are appreciated (e.g. a presentation in English could be accompanied by a PowerPoint in French, and vice versa). Similarly, sessions can be presented in either English or French, but bilingual sessions are especially welcomed. · Joint sessions: The CSHPS meeting overlaps with the meeting dates of a number of other member societies of the CFHSS, including the Canadian Philosophical Association, the Canadian Historical Association, Women’s and Gender Studies et Recherches Féministes, and the Canadian Society for the History of Medicine. We welcome proposals for joint sessions with these and other societies (please mention this specifically in your session proposal). However, no talk will be accepted for presentation at more than one society. · Number of submissions: Individuals can only submit one abstract for the CSHPS meeting (i.e. either an abstract for an individual paper or an abstract as part of a session proposal). · Submissions via EasyChair: ◦ In order to preserve the anonymity of authors, it is important that contact information and other identifying information be excluded from the file containing the abstract. ◦ Individual paper submissions should include a file with a title and a brief abstract (150-250 words), and—on the EasyChair form—the author’s name and contact information, and a list of keywords. ◦ Session proposals should include a single file with a session title, titles and brief abstracts (150-250 words) for each paper, and—on the EasyChair form—the names and contact information of the presenters and session organizer, and a list of keywords. ◦ Proposals should be in pdf format. ◦ Deadline: January 10th, 2020 ◦ Submissions: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=cshpsschps202 0 · Presenters: All presenters must be members of the CSHPS at the time of the meeting. For more information about CSHPS membership, consult: http://www.yorku.ca/cshps1/join.html. · Student Prize: The CSHPS offers the Richard Hadden Award, a book prize for the best student paper presented at the meeting. To be considered for the award, students should submit a copy of their paper by e-mail (program.cshps(a)gmail.com) by April 6th, 2020. Details of this prize can be found at: http://www.yorku.ca/cshps1/HaddenPrize.html. · CFHSS: Information about Congress registration and accommodation will be available at the CFHSS congress website: http://congress2020.ca. Program Committee (2019-2020): Geoff Bil (Delaware), Molly Kao (Montreal) chair, Gordon McOuat (King’s College), Audrey Yap (Victoria) Local Arrangements: Eric Desjardins (UWO) Contact email: program.cshps(a)gmail.com La Société canadienne d'histoire et de philosophie des sciences (SCHPS) tiendra son congrès annuel dans le cadre du Congrès des sciences humaines, London, ON, 30 mai – 1er juin 2020 (http://www.yorku.ca/cshps1/meeting_fr.html) Le comité de programme invite les historiens et philosophes des sciences à soumettre un résumé pour une communication individuelle ou une proposition de séance pour le congrès. Les propositions de séances (typiquement pour 3 communications) seront particulièrement bienvenues. Nous sommes notamment à la recherche de contributions sur le thème du Congrès des sciences humaines 2019, « Bâtir des passerelles : combattre le colonialisme et le racisme anti-Noirs ». Les contributions qui ne sont pas liées à ce thème seront également considérées. · Langues du congrès : La SCHPS est une société bilingue. Les communications individuelles peuvent être en français ou en anglais, mais les efforts pour faciliter une participation diversifiée sont encouragés (par exemple, une communication en français accompagnée d’une présentation PowerPoint en anglais, ou vice-versa). De même, les séances peuvent être en anglais ou en français, mais les sessions bilingues sont particulièrement appréciées. · Séances conjointes : Le congrès de la SCHPS se déroule en même temps que ceux de plusieurs autres sociétés membres de la FCSH, comme l’Association canadienne de philosophie, la Société historique du Canada, Women’s and Gender Studies et Recherches féministes, et la Société canadienne d’histoire de la médecine. Nous encourageons les propositions de séances conjointes avec d’autres sociétés (merci de bien l’indiquer dans votre proposition). Cependant, aucune communication ne peut être présentée à plus d’une société. · Nombre de soumissions : Une personne ne peut soumettre qu’un résumé de communication (c.-à-d. soit pour une communication individuelle soit dans le cadre d’une proposition de séance). · Soumissions avec EasyChair: ◦ Afin de préserver l’anonymat des auteurs, aucune coordonnée personnelle ne doit être incluse dans le fichier contenant la proposition de communication. ◦ Les propositions de communication individuelle doivent comprendre un fichier avec un titre et un résumé (entre 150 et 250 mots), et, sur le formulaire EasyChair, les coordonnées de l’auteur et une liste de mots clés. ◦ Les propositions de séance doivent comprendre un seul fichier avec le titre de la séance, les titres et résumés (entre 150 et 250 mots) de chaque contribution, et, sur le formulaire EasyChair, les noms et coordonnées des auteurs et de l’organisateur de la séance et une liste de mots clés. ◦ Les propositions doivent être soumises dans des fichiers de format pdf. ◦ Date limite de soumission: 10 janvier 2020. ◦ Les soumissions: https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=cshpsschps2020 · Présentateurs : Tous les présentateurs doivent être membres de la SCHPS au moment du congrès. Pour plus d’information sur l’inscription à la SCHPS, consulter le site : http://www.yorku.ca/cshps1/join_fr.html. · Prix étudiant: La SCHPS décerne le prix Richard Hadden pour la meilleure communication étudiante présentée lors du congrès. Les candidats qui souhaitent concourir devront envoyer par courriel (program.cshps(a)gmail.com) une copie de leur texte avant le 6 avril 2020. Pour plus d’information sur le prix, voir : http://www.yorku.ca/cshps1/HaddenPrize_fr.html. · Les informations concernant l’inscription et les possibilités d’hébergement pour le congrès se trouveront sur le site Internet du congrès de la FCSH: http://congres2020.ca/. Comité de programme (2019-2020) : Geoff Bil (Delaware), Molly Kao (Montréal) présidente, Gordon McOuat (King’s College), Audrey Yap (Victoria) Organisation locale: Eric Desjardins (UWO) Contact email: program.cshps(a)gmail.com -- Geoff Bil Visiting Assistant Professor Department of History, University of Delaware 236 John Munroe Hall, 46 W. Delaware Ave Newark, DE 19716-2547 Phone: +1 (302) 831-0807 E-mail: gbil(a)udel.edu Web: www.geoffbil.com | www.thecloverandthefern.com Twitter: @geoffbil [uc?export=download&id=1XlIpKXcQWIzZrDkjqxQSJwCUz7mLLdQa&revid=0B2DpvuATaT m8bHhjNktDaU1SL0pKWFNocUVoNjFhRHlnWTNZPQ] --------------------------------- This is an open, unmoderated discussion forum for members of the Canadian Society for the History and Philosophy of Science. Users are asked to be civil and judicious in their remarks. However, neither CSHPS, York University, nor Allan Olley assume any liability for the opinions expressed here. To signoff from this list, send an e-mail message to listserv(a)yorku.ca that reads "signoff cshps". Listserv Manager: Allan Olley allan_olley(a)yahoo.ca www.cshps.ca www.schps.ca ---------------------------------

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2019 highlights from the Charles Babbage Institute
by Jeffrey Yost 19 Dec '19

19 Dec '19

Dear Friends, These are exciting times at the Charles Babbage Institute (CBI), and we would like to share with you a few highlights from 2019: - The completion of multi-institutional project—a documentary on the history of computing in Minnesota. http://click.ecommunications2.umn.edu/?qs=6a3081b0585aabc36245e2644759533a7… Watch Solid State documentary . - CBI and the University Libraries launched the annual Samek Lecture in Information Science and Culture, with an inaugural lecture by leading IT scholar Bill Aspray. - The addition of Colorado’s Bill Aspray, and MIT’s Jennifer Light, as CBI Senior Research Fellows, as well as HSTM’s hiring of Assistant Professor Honghong Tinn, who also serves as an affiliated historian at CBI. - Archivist Amanda Wick and I co-led a highly successful Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Special Interest Group (SIG) Heritage/History Workshop, educating computer scientists from around the world interested in archiving and oral history. We expect that 2020 will be another exceptional year. On May 8-9, I will be partnering with standout past CBI Tomash Fellow UC-Davis’ Gerardo Con Diaz on CBI’s upcoming symposium “Just Code: Power, Inequality, and the Global Political Economy of IT,” at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus. http://click.ecommunications2.umn.edu/?qs=6a3081b0585aabc38557e0d151aaf0712… Register for the "Just Code" symposium . Accomplishments and events such as these would not be possible without your support. Our donors make what CBI does possible—research, unparalleled assistance to students and scholars globally, public history, CBI symposia, oral history, publishing, editorial leadership, and continually adding to our world leading CBI Archives. The opportunities are incredible, the need is pressing, and the impact, in true entrepreneurial fashion, is exponential! Thank you in advance for your generosity and happy holidays to all! Best wishes, Jeff Jeffrey R. Yost, Ph.D. CBI Director and Research Professor History of Science, Technology, and Medicine P.S. Your gift today will help us create an even brighter tomorrow for IT history/IT studies. http://click.ecommunications2.umn.edu/?qs=6a3081b0585aabc39ac632d699185deb3… Support CBI CBI is a partnership of the History of Science, Technology, Medicine Program in the University of Minnesota College of Science and Engineering and the University Libraries. This email was sent by: College of Science and Engineering at the University of Minnesota, 105 Walter Library, 117 Pleasant Street SE, Minneapolis, MN, 55455, USA. http://click.ecommunications2.umn.edu/?qs=6a3081b0585aabc36d181e3383c7411c3… unsubscribe MEMBERS(a)SIGCIS.ORG from this mailing list http://click.ecommunications2.umn.edu/?qs=6a3081b0585aabc3c4ae3b8f8105c775b… read our email privacy statement

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grapholinguistics conference call for papers
by dave walden 17 Dec '19

17 Dec '19

Just in case this is interesting to some members of this list ... https://grafematik2020.sciencesconf.org/ <https://grafematik2020.sciencesconf.org/>

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ACM Books' **corrected** pricing on NSF--CISE history
by Thomas Misa 15 Dec '19

15 Dec '19

Dear colleagues, Apologies that ACM Books messed up with initial pricing for the recently published Computing and the National Science Foundation, 1950-2016 by Peter Freeman, Rick Adrion, and Bill Aspray. ACM Books promised me to price its history titles at $40 softcover / $60 hardback — roughly in line with market rates. This correction now made on Amazon. Readers also may have access through a subscription model (something like JSTOR & Project Muse) through your local research/university library. https://www.amazon.com/Computing-National-Science-Foundation-1950-2016-eboo… <https://www.amazon.com/Computing-National-Science-Foundation-1950-2016-eboo…> The answer to :: which federal agency is the primary source of funding for fundamental research in computing and information technologies . . . . . ? NSF supported . . . the first widely-used web browser, Netscape; sponsored . . . algorithms at the core of the Google search engine; facilitated the growth of the public Internet; and funded research on the scientific basis for countless other applications and technologies. It’s a story that computing historians really need to know, and these authors make good use of their insider perspectives, access to documents, and dozens of new oral histories (deposited now at CBI) http://books.acm.org/titles#tab2022 <http://books.acm.org/titles#tab2022> ACM Books has half a dozen history titles in advanced stages of preparation. Please be looking for . . . >>> Code Nation: Personal Computing and the Learn to Program Movement in America by Michael Halvorson (with personal access to Microsoft activities (all too rare!) treatment of professional/applications programming == think MSDOS, Windows, C, Visual Basic) >>> Software: A Technical History by Kim Tracy with chapters on . . . operating systems . . . programming languages . . . programming environments/tools . . . networking . . . database management . . . and software futures >>> Emergence of Internetworking, 1968-1988 is a connected narrative by Jim Pelkey and Andy Russell based on 80 new/unpublished oral histories with industry pioneers and luminaries (interviews available at CHM) Best wishes, Tom Misa ================================

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Cortada's IBM Book == one of Bloomberg's top books for 2019
by Thomas Misa 12 Dec '19

12 Dec '19

Please see https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2019-best-books/ <https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2019-best-books/> for the announcement that Jim Cortada’s _IBM: Rise and Fall and Reinvention of a Global Icon_ (MIT Press = History of Computing series) is among the “top books of 2019” according to Bloomberg! —Tom Misa

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Tony Brooker: Obituary
by Brian Randell 10 Dec '19

10 Dec '19

Hi: I recently received the sad news of the demise of another British computing pioneer, Tony Brooker, described by Martin Campbell-Kelly in the obituary he wrote for the Guardian Newspaper as having “designed and implemented the world’s first high-level programming language”, the Manchester Autocode early in 1954 - see https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/dec/05/tony-brooker-obituary I knew and greatly liked and respected Tony, though I was not a user of any of his software, since I had no access to the types of computer on which it ran. I am pleased that Martin has produced such a fitting obituary, which also rightly describes Tony’s work on the compiler-compiler as “a milestone in the development of programming in the 1960s”. Cheers Brian Randell — School of Computing, Newcastle University, 1 Science Square, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE4 5TG EMAIL = Brian.Randell(a)ncl.ac.uk PHONE = +44 191 208 7923 URL = http://www.ncl.ac.uk/computing/people/profile/brianrandell.html

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2020-2021 CBI Tomash (Dissertation) Fellowship Announcement--Deadline for applications is January 15, 2020
by Jeffrey Yost 10 Dec '19

10 Dec '19

Dear Colleagues, Please find below the announcement for the 2020-2021 CBI Tomash Fellowship competition. Best, Jeff The Adelle and Erwin Tomash Fellowship in the History of Information Technology The Charles Babbage Institute is accepting applications for the 2020-2021 Adelle and Erwin Tomash Graduate Fellowship. The fellowship will be awarded to a graduate student for doctoral dissertation research in the history of computing. The fellowship may be held at the recipient's home academic institution, the Charles Babbage Institute, or any other location with appropriate research facilities. The stipend is $14,000. It is for students who have completed all requirements for the doctoral degree except the research and writing of the dissertation. Tomash Fellowship recipients must remain students in good standing throughout the term of their fellowship, but there is no restriction on holding other fellowships, scholarships, or awards concurrent to the Tomash Fellowship. Preference will be given to applicants indicating a need to use CBI materials, planning research in residence at CBI, and willing to make a brief presentation of their research findings to CBI staff and HSTM grad. students and faculty. Questions pertaining to collection content and access can be directed to Amanda Wick, CBI Interim Archivist, at abwick(a)umn.edu. Applicants should send to CBI a curriculum vitae and a five-page (single-spaced) statement and justification of the research project including a discussion of methods, research materials, evidence of faculty support for the project, and bibliography (bibliography does not count toward page count). Applicants should also arrange for three letters of reference and certified copies of graduate school transcripts to be sent directly to CBI. All materials must be received by CBI no later than January 15, 2020. Application materials should be sent to cbi(a)umn.edu. A confirmation email will be sent once your application has been received. Alternatively, applications may be mailed to (and must have a postmark date of Jan. 15, 2020 or earlier): Charles Babbage Institute: Tomash Fellowship 211 Andersen Library University of Minnesota 222 - 21st Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55455 Please direct questions about the Tomash Fellowship to Jeffrey Yost, CBI Director, yostx003(a)umn.edu, 612.624.5050 Jeffrey R. Yost, Ph.D. Director, Charles Babbage Institute Research Professor, Program in the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine 222 21st Avenue South University of Minnesota Minneapolis, MN 55455 612 624 5050 Phone 612 625 8054 Fax

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new book on history of computing at NSF
by William Aspray 10 Dec '19

10 Dec '19

You may be interested in the recent publication of Peter A. Freeman, W. Richards Adrion, and William Aspray, Computing and the National Science Foundation, 1950-2016: Building a Foundation for Modern Computing (ACM Books, 2019, 407 pp.). Thanks to Janet Abbate, Tom Haigh, and Jeff Yost for serving on the historical advisory committee for the project; and Tom Misa for shepherding the book through the publication process. NSF supported the project with a grant but did not have any editorial control over the content. The project resulted in approximately 5,000 documents and 50 oral histories being deposited at the Babbage Institute. These materials will eventually be available for scholarly use once the collection has been processed. -Bill Aspray

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