Beyond Numbers: a celebration of Ada Lovelace

Ada Lovelace Day, held on the second Tuesday of October every year, is an international celebration of the achievements of women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths which aims to increase the profile of women in STEM and create new role models for both girls and women studying or working in STEM.

“Beyond Numbers” coincides with this day and is specifically interested in exploring the potential identified by Ada Lovelace of machines to ‘act upon other things besides numbers’ to ‘compose elaborate and scientific pieces of music of any degree of complexity’. The aim of this particular event is to celebrate women, non-binary and transgender scientists, artists, musicians, researchers and thinkers whose works are based on scientific, technological and/or mathematical methods. A combination of all is most welcome! Following our theme, it’s a day where the fusion of science and creative arts has no limits, outreaches beyond the “numerical”, and provides a friendly space for local community to find out about one another. To share, to engage and to collaborate, in other words to bring us closer together.

This event is organized by Dr Sharon Webb and Ioann Maria and will feature a number of speakers.

• Sharon Webb — Opening of the event — When computers were people: historical overview of the role of women in technology

• Kate Howland – Talking Programming: research on designing voice user interface support for end-user programming in home automation

• Cécile Chevalier – Women and Tech: feeling, embracing and pushing gender boundaries

• Irene Fubara-Manuel – Dreams of Disguise: An Auto ethnographic Account of Virtual Borders talk + video screening

• Estela Oliva

• Akiko Haruna – Self value in the face of Ego: A/V and electronic music scene

• Ioann Maria – Contra-control structures: women and hacktivism