We can now watch Grace Hopper’s famed 1982 lecture on YouTube
Hopper was a very popular speaker not just because of her pioneering contributions to computing, but because she was a natural raconteur, telling entertaining and often irreverent war stories from her early days. And she spoke plainly, as evidenced in the 1982 lecture when she drew an analogy between using pairs of oxen to move large logs in the days before large tractors, and pairing computers to get more computer power rather than just getting a bigger computer—“which of course is what common sense would have told us to begin with.” For those who love the history of computers and computation, the full lecture is very much worth the time.
I’ve long heard about Rear Admiral Grace Hopper, often from unexpected people in disparate places.
Before he died, my neighbor, once an employee of American Satellite and IBM, mentioned her name more than once.
What a remarkable person.
Never forget… that this exists.
20 Days in Mariupol
What kind of world is this.
Children slaughtered in Mariupol. Children slaughtered in Gaza, in Israel.
What kind of world is this?
Bobby Fingers ‘The Boat’ Trailer
A new Bobby Fingers video feels a little like Christmas.
Frontline: From Jesus to Christ
I’ve long been interested in beginnings of things, be it a river, a time period, or a belief system. The Middle East has all three in spades. I’m drawn to that region not as a believer, but as someone compelled to understand the beginnings of a moral framework of my culture.
Why did Judaism and Christianity spring from this part of the world? What was/is so compelling about these stories?
Once we understand the source, it becomes infinitely more compelling to look at the current manifestations of these beliefs in my own time, culture, and country. Having lived in the Middle East, it becomes apparent that American Christianity is a bastardization — a cheap facsimile — of the religion as it was. Yet here I am, living in a culture full of people that believe in the watered-down version of those stories. How on earth Christians can be such rabid capitalists, I’ll never understand, but watching people twist their beliefs into knots to justify their actions and desires — a behavior not exclusive to Christians…or the religious — is a favorite pastime.
Lest I sound judgmental (because I am, to be clear), I’m guilty of these moral contortions, too. It’s human nature to do so, but the least we could do is own up to our moral hypocrisies. But that is not a hallmark of religion.
Human nature is endlessly fascinating, at least from a distance. Get too close and you risk your life, as evidenced by this documentary.
Feist and Hundreds of Choir Members Sing ‘Nothing Compares 2 U’ in Tribute to Sinéad O’Connor
Feist. Prince. Sinéad. Three of my favorite artists.
In death, I hope Sinéad found peace, and in that way, it doesn’t hurt.
But the loss of Prince still moves me to tears, almost eight years later.
Eight years.
Live: Watch the Gaza skyline
A live stream seems a little macabre, a little distasteful, a little too ‘normal’ for the circumstances, but I’ve been holding my breath for a week. I have friends in Gaza.
Three things I’ve been enjoying:
- The Larry Sanders Show
- The music of Florence Price
- The reference desk at my local library. Ask a question about, say, local history…then stand back. Phone books, plat maps, soil surveys, yearbooks, geographic studies…you name it, they know where to find it. You know you’re on to something special when you get a reference librarian to say, “Well now I’m curious.”
Prince, Tom Petty, Steve Winwood, Jeff Lynne and others — “While My Guitar Gently Weeps”
Imagine a world in which Steve Winwood is an afterthought.
Prince at 26 years old
This man taught me more about myself than anyone besides my parents.
Sheila E pays tribute
Damn it. There’s not a day that goes by when I don’t miss him.
The Langoliers
Horrendous acting by some wonderful actors.
Laura Branigan - Gloria
I’d been watching this on a loop when it hit me: she dances just like me when I’m home alone. I give it 10/10.
11/10 if you include marks for confidence. I mean just look at how much fun she’s having.
12/10 if we include that jumper. 😍
Arrested Succession
Arrested Development + Succession = perfection
The A.I. Dilemma
50% of AI researchers think there’s a 10% or greater chance that AI will cause the extinction of the human race.