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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · 2h

It is #BlackHistoryMonth
Read about Marc Hannah, a founder of Silicon Graphics, the original company pioneering fast graphics computers, and behind graphics pipelines that allowed realistic CGI in games and films.
cs4fn.blog/2024/10/31/m...

Marc Hannah and the graphics pipeline

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay What do a Nintendo games console and the films Jurassic Park, Beauty and the Beast and Terminator II have in common? They all used Marc Hannah’s chips and l…

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Reposted by Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN)

I'm a Scientist, Get me out of here @imascientist.org.uk · 19h

Unlock STEM career awareness - without leaving the classroom!

The Summer 2025 term feedback survey reported that 87% of teachers found the I'm a... activity to be extremely or very effective in raising students awareness of STEM careers.

imascientist.org.uk/book-activity

Student asks about researching physical diseases and how you run simulations on a computer. Chloe replies that she works with the data that people who do lab work generate. She uses command line tools, R and python.

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · 3d

October is cyber security awareness month though every month needs to be really. Read about the CS4FN take on cyber security at
cs4fn.blog/cyber-securi...
including cyber security at the movies and more...

Cyber Security

Adapted purple lock image by Pete Linforth from Pixabay CS4FN Issue 24 – Keep Out Be aware of cyber security risks October each year is Cyber Security Awareness month, though really every mon…

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · 6d

Free computing diversity role model posters for UK schools

Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · 13d

Lego Computer Science...Algorithms are core to computer science. So what is an algorithm? If you have ever used the instructions from a Lego set then you have followed algorithms for fun yourself and you have been a computational agent.
Find out more ...
cs4fn.blog/2025/09/26/l...

Lego Computer Science: Algorithms and computational agents

Image by Thomas G. from Pixabay The idea of an algorithm is core to computer science. So what is an algorithm? If you have ever used the instructions from some Lego set for building a Lego building…

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · 27d

#ComputingByAllForAll - TODAY
September 12 2017
Edie Schlain Windsor died. She was a senior systems engineer at IBM who led the case that made gay marriage legal in the US
cs4fn.blog/2023/02/19/e...

Edie Schlain Windsor and same sex marriage

Edie Schlain Windsor was a senior systems programmer at IBM. There is more to life than computing though. She led the landmark US Supreme Court Case that was a milestone for the rights of same-sex …

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KCL Natural, Mathematical and Engineering Sciences @kingsnmes.bsky.social · Sep 9

Calling all girls in Y12&13 to join us in Unlocking AI & Computer Science! Discover cutting-edge research and meet other people interested in this topic!

Apply now👇
bit.ly/uaics-2025

ℹ️Weekly Webinars
📆8 weeks from Oct 2025
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#EduSky #CSed #computing

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · 29d

#ComputingByAllForAll - YESTERDAY
September 9 1947
Grace Hopper discovered the first computer bug (a moth)
cs4fn.blog/2023/01/01/s...

Sorry to bug you: Grace Hopper

by Peter W McOwan and Paul Curzon, Queen Mary University of London (from the archive) In the 2003 film The Matrix Reloaded, Neo, Morpheus, Trinity and crew continue their battle with the machines t…

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · 29d

#ComputingByAllForAll - TODAY
September 10, 1955
Bonnie E. John born
Human Computer Interaction expert
Read about Cognitive Crash Test Dummies
cs4fn.blog/2023/01/30/c...

Cognitive crash dummies

Mathematical, digital and physical models can help us design things better (and more safely!)

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Sep 5

My 2nd new strand of work using Maton's LCT @lctcentre.bsky.social presented at #UKICER2025 on the problem of teaching skills (graduate, workplace, practical) with theory, visualising using the semantic plane, suggests should integrate with waves between theory and skills
dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/...

Using the LCT Semantic Plane to Reflect on Teaching Programming | Proceedings of the 2025 Conference on UK and Ireland Computing Education Research

dl.acm.org

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Sep 5

Today I presented 2 posters on new strands of work using Maton's LCT @lctcentre.bsky.social at #UKICER2025. The first was on the problem of ensuring students understand the 'rules of the game' in learning to program are (code quality matters) using the epistemic plane.
dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/...

Foregrounding the `Rules’ of Learning to Program with the LCT Epistemic Plane | Proceedings of the 2025 Conference on UK and Ireland Computing Education Research

dl.acm.org

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Sep 3

#ComputingByAllForAll - September 2 1815
Mary Edward dies
Mary and Eliza Edwards: the mother and daughter human computers who helped sailors navigate at sea with their work over 50 years for the nautical almanac.
Read about them at
cs4fn.blog/2025/09/03/m...

Mary and Eliza Edwards: the mother and daughter human computers

Lines of Longitude. Image from wikimedia, Public Domain. Mary Edwards was a computer, a human computer. Even more surprisingly for the time (the 1700s), she was a female computer (and so was her da…

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Sep 1

#ComputingByAllForAll
September is World Alzheimer’s month
Freddie Figgers invented a GPS tracker shoe for those with Alzheimer’s disease.
cs4fn.blog/2022/10/12/f...

Freddie Figgers – the abandoned baby who became a runaway telecom tech star

Freddie Figgers’ parents encouraged him to fix things – he now owns the first Black-owned telecommunications company in the US. #BlackHistoryMonth

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Aug 22

Computer Science at Sea
We think of computers and electronics generally as machines that must stay dry (not least because you can electrocute yourself ...don't do this at home!) but there are lots of ways that computer science is of help at, on, watching over or under the sea...
cs4fn.blog/the-sea/

Computer Science at Sea

Machines getting wet… We think of computers and electronics generally as machines that must stay dry (not least because you can electrocute yourself …don’t do this at home!) but t…

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Aug 18

For many of us, the deep sea is a bit of a mystery. But an exciting interactive digital tool at the National Museum of the Royal Navy brings the seabed to life! Find out about their augmented reality sandbox and its link to the voyage of HMS Challenger - by Daniel Gill
cs4fn.blog/2025/08/18/t...

The Digital Seabed: Data in Augmented Reality

A globe (North Atlantic visible) showing ocean depth information, with the path of HMS Challenger shown in red. Image by Daniel Gill. For many of us, the deep sea is a bit of a mystery. But an exci…

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Aug 12

Here is a neat little science experiment to do at home cs4fn.blog/2025/08/11/a... demonstrated at a family science workshop by the Dorset Wildlife Trusts to understand marine buoyancy - and how researchers can now use robots to understand ammonite (now fossils) life from 350 million years ago.

An experiment in buoyancy

Here is a little science experiment anyone can do to help understand the physics of marine animals and their buoyancy. It helps give insight into how animals such as ancient ammonites and now cuttl…

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Aug 10

If you were designing an underwater robot, what might you learn from the long extinct ammonite fossils and why might you need to program an ammonite brain?
cs4fn.blog/2025/08/10/a...

Ammonite propulsion of underwater robots

Image by M W from Pixabay Intending to make a marine robot that will operate under the ocean? Time to start learning, not just engineering and computing, but the physics of marine biology! And, it …

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Aug 4

Film Futures: how might movie plots change with Computer Science...
Just for fun, The Lord of the Rings if there was Computer Science in Middle Earth (and then the serious reality on our Earth)
cs4fn.blog/2025/08/04/f...

Film Futures: The Lord of the Rings

Image by Ondřej Neduchal from Pixabay What if there was Computer Science in Middle Earth?…Computer Scientists and digital artists are behind the fabulous special effects and computer generate…

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Aug 2

In an age of satellite navigation when ships have high-tech navigation systems that tell them exactly where they are, on accurate charts that show exactly where dangers lurk, why do we still keep working lighthouses? Because it makes for a more dependable system...
cs4fn.blog/2025/08/02/w...

Why do we still have lighthouses?

Image by Tom from Pixabay In an age of satellite navigation when all ships have high-tech navigation systems that can tell them exactly where they are to the metre, on accurate charts that show exa…

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Reposted by Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN)

JoBrodie @jobrodie.bsky.social · Jul 25

Free computing mini magazines to read and puzzles to solve for primary-aged children (roughtly 8-12 yo) from @cs4fn.bsky.social - get your PDFs here :)
cs4fndownloads.wordpress.com/primary/
- there are also printable certificates for puzzle book attempters and completers.

Screenshot showing 3 computing puzzle books and 5 mini computing magazines, part of the primary resources that are free to download.

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Reposted by Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN)

JoBrodie @jobrodie.bsky.social · Jul 23

Didn't know this! Love a bit of internet history :)

Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Jul 23

#ComputingByAllForAll - TODAY
July 23 1952
Mark Weiser was born
visionary proponent of calm and ubiquitous computing
(and drummer for the first band to livestream over the Internet)
cs4fn.blog/2025/07/23/t...

The first Internet concert

Severe Tire Damage. Image by Strubin, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons Which band was the first to stream a concert live over the Internet? The Rolling Stones decided, in 1994, it should be them.…

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Jul 23

#ComputingByAllForAll - TODAY
July 23 1952
Mark Weiser was born
visionary proponent of calm and ubiquitous computing
(and drummer for the first band to livestream over the Internet)
cs4fn.blog/2025/07/23/t...

The first Internet concert

Severe Tire Damage. Image by Strubin, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons Which band was the first to stream a concert live over the Internet? The Rolling Stones decided, in 1994, it should be them.…

cs4fn.blog

Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Jul 22

Let the brain take the strain
Is it always better to hand complicated jobs over completely to computers or can it make things more dangerous? How should you divide up work between human and computer is not always an easy question to answer.
cs4fn.blog/2025/07/22/l...

Let the brain take the strain

Image by Michi S from Pixabay Whenever humans have complicated, repetitive jobs to do, designers set to work making computer systems that do those jobs automatically. Autopilot systems in airplanes…

cs4fn.blog

Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Jul 22

#ComputingByAllForAll - TODAY
22 July is a UK Pi Day
Mādhava of Sangamagrāma calculated Pi to 10 dp
(Showing 22/7 does not accurately compute Pi!)
cs4fn.blog/2024/03/14/c...

Calculating Pi for Pi Day

Today is Pi Day (14 March: 3.14) so we should look at how on earth you compute a number like Pi (3.1.4159….). It has an infinite number of digits containing no repeating pattern so you can ne…

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Computer Science for Fun (CS4FN) @cs4fn.bsky.social · Jul 20

#ComputingByAllForAll TODAY
20 July 1969 - Moon Landing
You have heard of Neil Armstrong, first human on the moon. But have you heard of Margaret Hamilton? She was the lead engineer, responsible for the Apollo mission software that got him there, avoiding catastophe.
cs4fn.blog/2025/07/20/m...

Margaret Hamilton: Apollo Emergency! Take a deep breath, hold your nerve and count to 5

You have no doubt heard of Neil Armstrong, first human on the moon. But have you heard of Margaret Hamilton? She was the lead engineer, responsible for the Apollo mission software that got him ther…

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