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Former Robot Wars judge and resident DesignSpark blogger Dr Lucy Rogers is joined by comedians Bec Hill and Harriet Braine for the History Makers podcast, exploring modern technology and the people throughout history who have made it all possible.
In episode three, the trio discusses whether computer programming is our salvation or damnation. Dr Lucy explains all about computer programming and languages, “robot” Harriet uses her databanks to bring some makers to life and Bec tells us why we should never trust those computers!
So set your ears to receive and your mind to blown for History Makers episode three!
Listen Now
Missed our previous episodes?
Where have you been? There are two other episodes for you to catch up on, which you can find below:
Episode 1 - Wireless Communications: “It’s addictive, dangerous and I don’t trust it”
Episode 2 - Artificial Intelligence: “What would Mary Shelley make of Westworld?”
Meet The Maker
Grace Hopper; Grandma COBOL
Everyone knows what a computer is and some of us know all about programming languages, yet all of those computers out there and the languages they speak owe a part of their heritage to one particular person, the Amazing Grace Hopper, the Grandma of COBOL.
A curious child, Grace was often found tearing alarm clocks to pieces to see what made them tick (and then not tick), eventually, she channelled all that curiosity into earning a plethora of degrees in Physics and mathematics. Grace then spent her early years as a university tutor and soon became an associate professor.
Weighing 105lbs sopping wet, when WWII broke out Grace was wasn’t big enough to enlist. This turned out to be a good thing as she joined the navy reserve on an exemption (for being very clever) and got cracking on computer projects which she continued doing after the war ended.
Grace decided that programming should be easy and set about trying to change the mindset of the old-school computer fraternity, a difficult task back in the day. But, despite the animosity directed at her she succeeded, and she did find the first (deep fried) computer bug as well!
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Feel free to let us know what you thought of this episode in the comments below.
Disclaimer
Listener discretion is advised. The contents expressed in these Podcasts are the clever creation of the comedy teams involved, and although suitable for a wide range of audiences, please be aware of colourful language and the abuse of politicians. No robots (or humans) were harmed in the making of these podcasts.