Tuesday, March 10, 2020

WOMEN’S HISTORY MONTH: Ada Lovelace:

March is here and it’s time to share stories about women who have made a difference in our world.

On one hand, I’m grateful there is a month when we acknowledge women’s contributions; on the other, I would like to be in a world where everyone’s contributions are honored by everyone, and there is no need to distinguish those people by some artificial grouping.

That world will come, but not in my lifetime.

Today I want to draw attention to a woman who thinking was a hundred years ahead of her time, and you may or may not have ever heard of.

ADA BYRON LOVELACE

Ada Lovelace -- born Augusta Ada Byron (1815); died Ada King, Countess of Lovelace (1852) -- is considered by much of the computer science profession, as the world's first computer programmer and the first person to recognize the full potential of a computing machine.

Lovelace wrote the world’s first machine algorithm for an early computing machine developed by Charles Babbage, that existed only on paper. Of course, someone had to be the first, but Lovelace was a woman, and this was in the 1840s.

Ada Lovelace was a brilliant mathematician, thanks in part to opportunities that were denied most women of the time, but credit for her significant insights were played down, then forgotten, by the male-dominated world of mathematics and computing. Her contributions have been recognized only recently. Better late than never.

Photo: Alfred Edward Chalon / Science Museum Group
Photo source: https://inews.co.uk/ada-lovelace-day

A VERY INTERESTING WOMAN

Her achievements in computer programming are not the only interesting things about Ada Lovelace.

She was born Augusta Ada Byron, the only legitimate child of the poet Lord Byron and Anne Isabelle (called Annabella) Noel Milbanke. Lord Byron expected a boy and was disappointed the child was of the female persuasion.

Ada was named after Byron's half-sister, Augusta Leigh, and he called her Ada … but not for very long. The marriage ended about two months after Ada was born. Lord Byron left England shortly after that, and Ada, his only legitimate offspring, had no contact with him during her lifetime. She was eight years old when he died, and never even saw a portrait of him until her 21^st birthday.

Ada Byron at seventeen - Artist unknown
photo source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ada_Lovelace

Lord Byron must have left Annabella with “a bad taste in her mouth” for romantic poets, because she did everything possible to make her daughter Ada as unlike her poetical father as she could. Lady Byron herself had mathematical training--Byron had called his wife his Princess of Parallelograms–and she made sure Ada had extensive education in mathematics, logic, and music, the disciplines Annabella considered necessary to divert dangerous poetic tendencies…which Lady Byron considered “insane”.

Although Ada and Lady Byron shared a love of mathematics, she and her mother were never close, and she was raised primarily by her maternal grandmother.

Lord George Gordon Noel Byron – poet
Photo source newworldencyclopedia.org/Byron

Despite suffering poor health during her childhood and being bed-ridden for a year, Lovelace diligently pursued her study of mathematics. At twelve she designed a sophisticated flying machine powered by steam.

Her late teens were busy eventful years (1833-1835). Ada had an affair with her tutor and tried to elope, but was recognized and returned to her mother who hushed up the disgrace. The same year, her friend, Mary Somerville, introduced her to Charles Babbage, a professor of mathematics at Cambridge. He found her mind brilliant, and they formed a lifelong friendship during which they wrote long letters about mathematics, logic, and his plans to build a difference machine, a kind of calculator.

Having been raised in an elite London society, Ada was introduced to court, and by 1834 she had become a regular there. She charmed everyone, impressed them with her brilliant mind, and had an impressive circle of acquaintances including Charles Dickens, and Michael Faraday.

In 1835, Ada married William King-Noel, and had three children, born in 1836, 1837, and 1839. She suffered from illness after the second child. Three years later, King inherited a noble title, and the couple became the Earl and Countess of Lovelace. The family and its fortunes were very much directed by the domineering Lady Byron, to which William-King raised no opposition.

A WOMAN A HUNDRED YEARS AHEAD OF HER TIME

In the mean time, Lovelace’s friend Babbage abandoned the construction of his difference machine in favor of a more advanced idea for an Analytical Engine. He found financial support from Italian military engineer Luigi Menabrea for his new project. In 1842, Menabrea published a paper in French on the subject of the engine. Babbage recruited his friend Ada to translate the document.

She spent nine intense months during 1842-1843 translating the paper and appending a set of her own notes containing a detailed description of how the proposed Analytrical Engine could be programmed to compute Bernoulli numbers. Her addendum -- Ada’s claim to fame -- was three time longer than the paper itself.

Unfortunately, the men of mathematics and history have spent a lot of time in the past one hundred years trying to discredit her and minimize her contribution. As late as 1990, Allan G. Bromley, in his article Difference and Analytical Engines, states “

“Not only is there no evidence that Ada ever prepared a program for the Analytical Engine, but her correspondence with Babbage shows that she did not have the knowledge to do so”

According to the Doron Swade, museum curator and author, specializing in Babbage and the history of computing, writes,“In Babbage's world his engines were bound by number...What Lovelace saw—what Ada Byron saw—was that number could represent entities other than quantity. So once you had a machine for manipulating numbers, if those numbers represented other things, letters, musical notes, then the machine could manipulate symbols of which number was one instance, according to rules.

It is this fundamental transition from a machine which is a number cruncher to a machine for manipulating symbols according to rules that is the fundamental transition from calculation to computation—to general-purpose computation—and looking back from the present high ground of modern computing, if we are looking and sifting history for that transition, then that transition was made explicitly by Ada in that 1843 paper.”

Even critics of the “Ada Lovelace, world's-first-computer-programmer claim” seem to agree that she was the only person of the time to foresee the potential of the analytical engine as a machine capable of expressing entities other than quantities, the evolution from number crunching device (a calculator) to a general purpose computer.

FATE OF THE ANALYTICAL ENGINE

Due to lack of funding, Babbage never completed the building of the Analytical Engine, but the design is considered by historians as the first general purpose computer. A portion of the machine was completed in 1910 by Babbage’s son Henry, and it was able to perform basic calculations as designed.

Trial model of a part of the Analytical Engine, built by Babbage, as displayed at the Science Museum (London)
Photo source:: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analytical_Engine

FATE OF ADA LOVELACE

Apparently, after that, Ada continued her life as a countess, a mother, and a student of mathematics, phrenology and mesmerism, along with a number of flirtations and gambling. In 1851, she formed a syndicate and attempted to create a mathematical model for successful large bets. The failure of this venture left her in debt to the syndicate, and she had to fess up to her husband. Presumably, he paid her debts, but no source I used commented on that. However, from the looks of their home, her husband probably had enough pocket money to reimburse the syndicate.

In 1852, after a few months of illness, Ada Lovelace died at the age of thirty-six – the same age as her father when he died – from uterine cancer. She was buried next to her father, at her request, in Huckinall, Nottinghamshire at the Church of St. Mary Magdalene.

HOW SHE IS REMEMBERED

Despite the controversy about the mathematical ability of the Countess of Lovelace, her contributions and foresight have made a difference in the world. After all, Babbage himself referred to her as the "Enchantress of Numbers.”

She is remembered and honored in many ways, including

● Ada Lovelace Award: Created in 1981 by the Association for Women in Computing.

● Lovelace Medal: Awarded by the British Computer Society (BCS) since.1998. This organization has also initiated an annual competition for women students.

● National Ada Lovelace Day: On 27 July 2018, Senator Ron Wyden submitted, in the US Senate, the designation of 9 October 2018 as National Ada Lovelace Day: "To honor the life and contributions of Ada Lovelace as a leading woman in science and mathematics". The resolution (S.Res.592) was considered, and agreed to without amendment and with a preamble by unanimous consent

The acknowledgement is late in coming. I believe that in the future she will still be a person of importance in the computing field.

AUTHOR R. ANN SIRACUSA
Travel to Foreign Lands for Romance and Intrigue

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Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ada_Lovelace
en.wikipedia.org/Ada_Lovelace 7
https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/ada-lovelace-the-first-tech-visionary
https://www.biography.com/scholar/ada-lovelace
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ada-Lovelace
https://inews.co.uk/news/science/ada-lovelace-day-2018-facts-female-scientists-506562
https://www.autodesk.com/products/eagle/blog/computers-around-century-ago/
https://www.sciencefocus.com/future-technology/how-ada-lovelaces-notes-on-the-analytical-engine-created-the-first-computer-program/
https://www.computerhope.com/jargon/a/analyten.htm
https://www.cnn.com/ampstories/tech/meet-ada-lovelace-the-first-computer-programmer
https://www.computerhistory.org/babbage/adalovelace/
https://www.sdsc.edu/ScienceWomen/lovelace.html
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-Babbage
http://mentalfloss.com/article/53131/ada-lovelace-first-computer-programmer
https://inews.co.uk/news/science/ada-lovelace-day-2018-facts-female-scientists-506562
https://www.1843magazine.com/intelligence/cracking-coder
https://www.uvu.edu/wsc/blog/blog_posts/whywomenshistorymatters.html□

Thursday, February 27, 2020

Sneak Peek of Alien Desire by Janice Seagraves

Alien Desire (Chronicles of Arcon Book 2)

The Arcons Tane and Brock Moonwalker are vacationing in the small town of Greenwood. Tane is dealing with agoraphobia, a condition worsened by the loss of their female. Brock and his friend needed to get away, but a tiny, gang ridden town is the last place they expected to find love.

Saki Starling had trouble on her heels and couldn't catch a break. She lost her apartment and a local gang threatened her at every turn. With her week at its lowest point, Tane and Brock promised to brighten her darkening world.

Tane, Brock, and Saki must find a way to come together, if they have any hope of overcoming their past and heal their broken hearts.

“Hey, chica. C’mova ‘ere,” said a thickly accented voice.

Saki cringed. Emanuel was hanging out with his homies at one of the picnic tables. She swallowed hard. Damn, I should have known better than take a short cut through here.

“I’ve got to get home.” She walked faster.

Emanuel laughed. “No, you don’t. You ain’t got no home. My old lady said she saw you get kicked out of that roach motel you lived at.”

“I got a new place.” As she kept moving, her heart pounded a painful rhythm against her chest.

“With the aliens?” He jogged over, angling to cut her off, his baggy pants nearly falling off his ass. Hector and José trailed close behind. “You screwing those things from outa-space, chica?”

“I’m not screwing anybody.”

Emanuel grabbed her arm, turning her around. “Good. I got a job for you. A little skinny niña like you don’t get stopped. You look too sweet and innocent to be holding.”

Saki pushed him away. “I only did that once, and it was a mistake. I’m not going to be a carrier for you anymore. I almost got caught last time, you dick head.”

Emanuel turned to share a laugh with his cronies, and then he slammed her against the tree. While she gasped for breath, he grabbed her face in a painful grip.

“Puta. You’ll work for me until I tell you otherwise. Understand?” He looked her up and down. “If that’s not to your liking, then maybe there’s something else you can do for me and my homies.”

Hector and José both snickered, moving closer. Emanuel licked his lips and stared at her tits.

“Oh, hell no!” She kicked his knee.

“Jodeinda puta,” Emanuel cussed, still keeping Saki pinned with one hand. “I’m going to make you pay for that.”

“No. You. Will. Not.” Saki slammed her knee into Emanuel’s crotch.

Emanuel loosened his grip to hold his family jewels.

Saki took a step to get around him, ready to run, but José with a smirk moved to block her way. When she went the other way, Hector stepped in to keep her from escaping.

“Excuse me, do you need any help?” asked a familiar cultured voice.

Emanuel straightened but didn’t even look around. “Get lost. I’m busy.”

“I wasn’t asking you.” A hand gripped Emanuel’s shoulder and spun him around. “As amusing as it was to watch Saki pound your testicles, I think I want a turn.”

Emanuel craned his neck, staring up at the much taller Arcon. “What the f—?”

“Here’s a lesson you need to learn, human.” Tane snarled, flashing his white canines. “You never hurt a female—ever.”

In a move almost too fast to see, Tane lifted Emanuel and sent him flying. The gangbanger landed on his backside, sliding through a pool of water, past a broken sprinkler.

Tane turned to the other two standing nearby. He cracked his knuckles. “Shall I show you some Arcon discipline?

https://www.amazon.com/Alien-Desire-Chronicles-Arcon-Book-ebook/dp/B0854M8RZ4/

Tuesday, February 18, 2020

Once Again Then One More Time

Earlier today, I was scrolling through Twitter and I came upon a conversation about Outlander. The topic centered around how they couldn’t watch the show anymore. That for them the magic was gone. That had me thinking about series. Sure, series are going to lose some fans. Times change, stories become dull or a myriad of other reasons. Series burnout, I call it. I have dropped a few series that once brought me enjoyment. And I’m sure you have too.

So, what happens when an author tires of writing a character or world? Agatha Christie killed off Hercule Poirot because she was tired of writing the character. Authors are encouraged to write a series to lure back the readers. And it’s wonderful when readers love the stories we weave and we can support ourselves by slapping our fingers against the keyboard but how do we keep our passion for the projects especially when we are under contract?

Through we are creatives we are still in business—the publishing business. I’m really don’t know a definitive answer to that question. I can only think of a few things. First, let’s set a challenge for ourselves. Perhaps, we can get more newsletter subscribers or getting an ad or an interview. Anything that can make us feel like we are growing. Second, rediscover what you loved about the story and add a dash of something new to spice it up. You can even ask your readers what they love about the series or even hate. That might help you see a bright new angle in your series. Third, get a hobby. Writing might have started off as a hobby that turned into a business so you need a different creative outlet.

Burnout is real and as both readers and writers, we must keep that spark alive. It will fuel us. Yet, sometimes we have to let go.

Have you written a series? Do you feel excitement?

Readers, do you have a series you love or one that you had to let go? So why do you feel the love for one and let go of another?

Tuesday, February 4, 2020

Harley Wylde Guest Post

Harley Wylde has a brand new series out!!

Published by Changeling Press
Cover Artist: Bryan Keller

Meiling – All I’ve ever known was pain. My life has been far from a fairytale. No parents. No friends. Just an endless nightmare that I can’t wake from. Until the day a man offered me his hand and promised to keep me safe. I’ve never trusted anyone before, but there’s something about him. Maybe it’s insane, but I know he won’t hurt me, and when he puts his arms around me, for the first time in my life I feel loved.

Dingo – I’ve always had a soft spot for women and kids in trouble. One look at Meiling, and I knew I had to protect her at any cost. The beautiful girl with the wounded soul. After all she’s suffered, all I want is to make her smile, make her feel secure, and give her a chance to find happiness. But first, I need to take out the men and women responsible for hurting her. It might get ugly, and messy, but they don’t call me Dingo for nothing. I’m a crazy bastard and I won’t stop until she’s safe. I just didn’t count on falling for her along the way.

Warning: Meiling’s past isn’t pretty. Dingo and Meiling’s story deals with issues of human trafficking, bureaucratic corruption, and vigilante justice. This book contains darker themes that may trigger some readers.

Read an excerpt --> http://bit.ly/2tzp89y

Apple Books: https://apple.co/310eXas

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/dingo-20

B&N: http://bit.ly/2ue5L6f

Amazon: http://mybook.to/Dingo_DFMC

Monday, January 27, 2020

#Confession Time by Janice Seagraves

I have a confession...I haven't been writing anything new in two years.

However, I have been revising some old manuscripts. One is science fiction romance from my Chronicles of Arcon series and the other is something very old. My first book-length manuscript. I'm taking them both through critique groups and revising them.

How are you doing with your own writing? Are you writing anything new or revising something old?

Still free on Kindle Select:

Year of the Cat

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Blurb:
Morgan isn’t expecting romance when she accompanies her friend for a week of skiing, but when she meets Jared all bets are off.
Haunted by the loss of his parents, werecat Jared Catterick earns his keep working for the Catclaw Clan. Jared has secrets that he doesn’t mind sharing with a special lady, and he hopes Morgan is that special someone. When his past and present collide it’s worse than he imagined, and he’s forced to fight for his life.

Excerpt:
Auntie walked into the middle of the hollow. “We the Catcall Clan are gathered here together to witness a challenge. Called by Munch son of Tiger, who challenges Jared Catterick son of nobody.”
“I am the son of somebody,” Jared yelled. The sudden flow of anger had his heart pounding hard against his ribs.
“Who? What are their names?” Auntie crossed her arm and leaned on one hip and tapped a toe.
“I donna remember. I was too young when they killed them and took me away,” Jared muttered. “And she knows that.”
“Is Catterick your real last name?” Killer asked him in the canine speech.
“Aye. I donna remember much about me old life, but I never forgot me name.”
“Just tell her Mr. and Mrs. Catterick,” Killer said.
“Me parents were Mr. and Mrs. Catterick,” Jared said in a loud clear voice.
A few people around the hollow snickered.
Auntie gave a quick nod. “Jared son of Mr. and Mrs. Catterick. Munch challenges you for the death of his da, Tiger.”
Munch marched to Auntie’s side. He was every bit as big as his father. Well-muscled and not just tall but wide. Where Tiger’s hair was gray and white, Munch was blond and black. Another man accompanied him, his second, a tall, lanky male named Boyd. Jared knew him well, even though he was younger.
“Och. Here we go,” Jared told Killer and walked out into the middle of the hollow.
“He’s big,” Killer said in the canine speech.
“And ugly. I wouldna want to ride him into battle.”
Killer stayed at his side. “Psst.”
“Eh?”
“You can fight, right?” Killer asked.
“Aye.”
“Good to know.”
Auntie looked at both males. “Jared, as the challenged, you may decide on weapons and forms.”
“Human and no weapons,” Jared said.
“Very well,” Auntie said. “You may use your feet, hands, elbows and knees. Even your head if you feel the need.”
“What aboot sticks and stones?” Munch asked, his voice youthful.
“Will break my bones,” Jared said under his breath.
Killer snickered.
“No weapons,” Auntie shook a finger at Munch. “That includes sticks and stones.”
“Well,” Munch crossed his arms, “since I canna change into cat form, I think I should be able to use whatever I find in the hollow.”
“This isn’t a free-for-all, Munch. There is discipline to a challenge. You must remain in your human form and fight like a human. With this match, we’ll have a square go.”
“Not very cat-like.” Munch sniffed.
Auntie fisted her hands and leaned toward Munch. “You’re not a cat. You are a shifter. You shift between three forms. Now stay with one for the duration of the fight.”
“Doesn’t he understand?” Killer asked.
“A bit daft that one,” Jared muttered back. Munch doesn’t seem have a lot of self-control. Unlike Tiger who would have done exactly what Auntie said to the letter.
“Seconds, to the side.” Auntie pointed. “You may view the fight only. Do not interfere unless your partner is hurt or someone breaks the rules.”
Both Boyd and Killer trotted to edge of the clearing.
Jared stood facing Munch. Several feet separated them. Jared shook out his arms, moved his head from side to side, and loosened his muscles.
Auntie raised her hand and did a karate chop between them. “Now fight.”
“I swear on me da’s grave, I will end you!” Munch roared and the skin on his face boiled. His hands burst out of his gloves and feet from his boots. The shift made Munch bigger, tearing his clothes. He stopped in the in-between state, like movie werewolves of old, but in this case half-cat and half-human. The only thing that remained of his clothes was his black overall snow pants and even that stretched taunt across him. Extending his claws, he snarled and reached for Jared. “I want to see you bleedin’.”

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0748CP9JH/

Saturday, January 18, 2020

Am I Old? Don't ask a Three-year old.

The subject of this post was suppose to be about resolutions but as I sat down at my laptop to write it, my six-year-old grand nephew (yes, grand) was watching Youtube videos about playing Roblox games and I was utterly confused by the game and why watch videos of other people playing.

That was when I asked myself that question we all put to ourselves when the kids are doing something we cannot comprehend what is enjoyable about the act—Am I old?

Probably me in the future.

I’m forty-six years old and though, I know it’s 2020 yet when I think of that year, it still seems like that it is a sci-fi future that doesn’t exist in reality. That’s Back to the Future II fault. The movie is set in 2015, five years ago.

The most amazing thing is I don’t feel old. I feel as if I still have the whole world before me and I have so many plans. Yet, I can see the physical changes. I have more than a few gray hairs or as I call them nature’s highlights. Sometimes, I decide to dye my hair then decide I can’t be bothered.

When I smile the lines around my mouth don’t disappear as fast as they once did. I’m pretty lucky since I don’t have many lines on my face. But I notice the lines around my neck, which isn’t a good thing when you’re a writer and have your head bent down to the computer. Also some fine print looks like nothing but squiggly lines dancing around the back of the pill bottle.

I am now at the age when I once said would be a good year to die. My teenage self swore that forty-six was old and life would have nothing else to look forward too. Ah, the hubris of youth. Now I feel that there is so much more for me. Mentally, I feel my best even with my anxiety and panic attacks. I have a clearness and understanding that I never had in youth and wished I did. Life would have been easier.
Fibromyalgia may be affecting me but I feel a hope that seems much more real and rooted then I ever possessed in my youth.

So, do we really get old? Or does the body change like seasons and we must seek out life and feed the fire within us? I believe we must. We don’t have to live the idea of age but the best life for us.

So, I am not old. I am better and with much life still to do. I’m sure you feel the same. So, we’re not old. We’re better. In what ways are you getting better?