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4 opere 194 membri 24 recensioni

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Comprende il nome: David Dufty

Opere di David F. Dufty

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I had a very mixed reaction to this book. I'm into Philip K. Dick, I am interested in artificial intelligence and robotics, and this book delivered lots of repeatable factoids in those arenas. BUT it also kept rubbing me the wrong way. I understand that this is a book of non-fiction and that the major players in this story were all cis white men. BUT even when women did show up, the way they were written about left a bad taste in my mouth. And they didn't show up very often. A series of Hanson's ex-girlfriends, mostly unnamed, who serve as models for Hanson's early robotic heads. Olney's wife, who is mentioned mostly in the context of being annoyed when he isn't home for dinner. Matthew's girlfriend, who does at least get a name (Sarah Petschonek), but is described ONLY as his girlfriend, DESPITE THE FACT that she also works in the same building, so undoubtably has SOME area of expertise or life of her own, even if it isn't robotics. AND THEN there is the conversational "AI" program the author mentions writing in class, who is gendered as female and whose entire "personality" is making computer-pun come-ons? I didn't set out looking for it, but all the same it became EXHAUSTING. I wanted to like this more, because the topic was deeply interesting, but it was just okay.… (altro)
 
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greeniezona | 20 altre recensioni | Sep 29, 2022 |
Many books have been written of recent years about Bletchley Park and the British cracking of the German Enigma ciphering machine, and the dissemination of Ultra intelligence. The story of similar work against the Japanese communication network is less know, and the story of Australia involvement even less so. Secret Code-breakers of Central Bureau addresses this hitherto unknown history, correcting aspects of the story where US claims were unwarranted, and identifying key players in the Australian sphere. An interesting aspect is Dufty’s portrayal of the inter-personal and inter-service rivalries that coloured many of the activities. War is messy, and personalities under stress don’t necessarily successfully subjugate their personalities to the corporate good. This is a fascinating focus on Australia code-breaking, deciphering, and traffic analysis activities during World War 2.… (altro)
 
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rodneyvc | Jan 26, 2021 |
A competent retelling of the story behind the project of making a PKD talking head. When I read about it on the news back in the day I thought it was a research experiment but it looks like it was more of an art installation. None of the software running it was cutting edge. It amazes me how siloed academia seems to be and completely unaware of the state of the art in the real world.
 
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Paul_S | 20 altre recensioni | Dec 23, 2020 |
Radio Girl by David Duffy is, as the tag line says, the story of the extraordinary Mrs Mac, pioneering engineer and wartime legend.

(Florence) Violet McKenzie née Wallace, who later came to be known affectionately to many as Mrs. Mac, was born in Melbourne in 1890, married in 1924, and died in 1982. While her childhood in Austinmeer, south of Sydney, was largely unremarkable she went on to make an outstanding contribution to Australian society over her lifetime.

Radio Girl is a fascinating tribute to an amazing woman who deserves far more recognition than she has ever been given. I was quickly absorbed in the tale of Mrs Mac’s life, inspired by all she achieved, and frankly annoyed that I’ve never heard of her.

Some of Violet’s many accomplishments included becoming Australia’s first woman to earn a diploma in electrical engineering, owning and operating a successful store, the ‘Wireless Shop’, catering to amateur radio enthusiasts, and establishing the Electrical Association for Women.

However Violet’s most significant achievement was her contribution to the war effort. In 1939 Mrs Mac, as she was by then commonly called, created the Women’s Emergency Signalling Corps, ultimately training around 3000 women in Morse code. She became the driving force behind the creation of the Women’s Royal Australian Navy Service in 1941, which employed as many as a third of ‘her girls’ during WWII, and also trained thousands of enlisted and civilian men, from more than half a dozen countries, in signalling.

Suitable for the general reader, as well as those with specific interest in Australian military history or womens history, Duffy’s narrative reads well, it’s detailed without being dry, and informal in tone. Progressing chronologically through Violet’s lifetime, Duffy includes a dozen or so photographs, which I always appreciate. While it is unfortunate though that Violet could not directly contribute to this biography as I‘d be interested in the addition of a more personal perspective, the story of the Radio Girl and her achievements is nevertheless fascinating.

Radio Girl is interesting and informative and I’d like to thank David Duffy for ensuring Mrs Mac, and her admirable accomplishments are recognised in the present day, and recorded for history.
… (altro)
 
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shelleyraec | 1 altra recensione | May 15, 2020 |

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Statistiche

Opere
4
Utenti
194
Popolarità
#112,877
Voto
½ 3.5
Recensioni
24
ISBN
22
Lingue
1

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