Computing

Turing designed the ‘bombes’ to attempt to deal with the proliferation of enemy messages and therefore pinpoint the location of German U-Boat submarines. Eventually, over 200 were built, each weighing a ton and operating constantly at Bletchley Park and other secret sites in the UK. The exhibition also includes a working aid used to break Enigma, which has never been displayed outside of GCHQ. more »

Doris O'Brien writes: The whole world seems fixated on keeping in touch with everyone other than those who are with them. Yesterday I observed a couple seated at a table at a pleasant outdoor café, perhaps to enjoy an early dinner together. It could have been a time for hand-holding or sharing the details of one another’s day. Instead, both were staring into their own latest-technology iphones, their minds elsewhere rather than on each other. more »

We've observed an uptick in cell phone use for research purposes recently, including confirmation of the owner's accuracy in a conversation with friends. "Let me check that (on my phone)". They're also looking up times that events will start, nearby restaurants, objects on view at a musem, shopping nearby and so on. more »

Rose Madeline Mula writes: "We see parents at dance recitals, soccer games, graduations — engrossed in texting, instead of focusing on their little darlings who are going to be grown and out of the nest almost before the next message pops up on mom’s or dad’s I-phone. Meanwhile, students in classrooms are surreptitiously texting, oblivious to the words of their professors ..." more »