Don’t forget Women of Letters – curated by Marieke Hardy & Michaela McGuire – March 28th – Melbourne

Bella Union in Trades Hall, Melbourne, Sunday March 28th, 2.30pm

Also raising money for Victorian animal rescue shelter Edgar’s Mission

The first of what will be a monthly event, Sunday will bring together five of Melbourne’s snappiest writers, musicians, politicians and comedians, in celebration of the beautiful lost art of letter-writing.

Angie Hart, Black Text publisher Caro Cooper, the Green Guide’s Lorelei Vashti, Myf Warhurst and Judith Lucy will each read a letter they penned to “The Night I’d Rather Forget.”

Musical interludes by local djs (including The Town Bikes’ Gabby) will keep you amused, and attendees are encouraged to pen short notes to the Women of Letters themselves, which will then be used by Michaela McGuire as points of discussion in a free-wheeling panel chat.

Tickets $10, available at the door.

Happy Ada Lovelace Day Gurls #adalovelace #polynomial #geekgirl

Ada Lovelace the Legend

Ada Lovelace was born Ada Byron in 1815. Though she never met him, Ada was the daughter of the poet Lord Byron.

In 1833 (when she was only 17), Ada met Charles Babbage, the inventor of the Difference Engine. They became lifelong friends, and later, scientific collaborators.

In 1835, Ada married William King, who subsequently inherited a noble title, whereupon Ada became “Ada Byron, Countess of Lovelace.”

Babbage enlisted the Countess’s help in translating the memoir of an Italian mathematician, (Bernoulli) and in the process Ada produced copious notes of Babbage’s Difference Engine. It is for these documents, simply titled “Notes,” that she remains famous today (although probably less so than she deserves). Although she is credited as the “founder of scientific computing,” I would also argue that Ada was the first technical writer.

Ada Lovelace died of cancer in 1852.

Cited: Dunechaser

Girl Clock – the Movie #geekgirl

Girl Clock! follows the journey of three normal women who would happily enjoy their forties, if only Mother Nature wasn’t so cruel.

Globe-trotting Christine wakes up one ordinary day to find that her biological clock has gone off with a vengeance. But for a commitment-phobe on the wrong side of 40, the road to motherhood is strewn with bedlam, calamity and smoked out eggs.

Australian independent made and distributed.
Jennifer Ussi Producer/Director/Co-writer

Follow on Twitter at http://twitter.com/girlclock

My Celebrity Look-alikes #geekgirl

Role Playing Girl Zine #zines #geekgirl #gamers

Role Playing Girl Zine, a yearly publication about women in gaming, is seeking submissions of essays by women gamers, designers, researchers and others interested in role playing games. Cartoons also welcome. The 2010 theme: International Update.

http://rpgirl-zine.blogspot.com/

Ada Lovelace Day, March 24 #geekgirl

Ada Lovelace Day is an international day of blogging (videologging, podcasting, comic drawing etc.!) to draw attention to the achievements of women in technology and science.

Women’s contributions often go unacknowledged, their innovations seldom mentioned, their faces rarely recognised. We want you to tell the world about these unsung heroines, whatever they do. It doesn’t matter how new or old your blog is, what gender you are, what language you blog in, or what you normally blog about – everyone is invited. Just sign the pledge at Finding Ada and publish your blog post any time on Wednesday 24th March 2010.

Who was Ada Lovelace?

Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace (10 December 1815 – 27 November 1852), born Augusta Ada Byron, was an English writer chiefly known for her work on Charles Babbage’s early mechanical general-purpose computer, the analytical engine. Her notes on the engine include what is recognized as the first algorithm intended to be processed by a machine; as such she is often regarded as the world’s first computer programmer.

Find Your Tribe (and 9 other things I wish I’d known in high school) by Rebecca Sparrow #geekgirl #gurls

FIND YOUR TRIBE

High school handed best-selling author, Rebecca Sparrow, some of her most crushing moments:
• No-one invited her to her Year 12 formal
• Despite playing netball since she was nine, she wasn’t even selected for the C-Grade netball team
• She was kicked out of ‘Advanced Maths’ and made to do ‘Maths in Society’
• And – as if all that wasn’t bad enough – thanks to her permed hair she spent her teenage years looking like a cross between Jon Bon Jovi and Tootsie

And yet, Rebecca is one of those rare people who claims to have loved (nearly) every minute of her high school days. The question is – HOW?

In Find Your Tribe, Rebecca outlines the 10 key lessons she believes make the difference to not just surviving, but enjoying, those years, including – finding your tribe (your true friends), trusting your intuition, learning to be resilient, having a positive body image, coping with the pressure of school work, the importance of giving back to the community, the dangers of binge drinking and the delicate issue of young love … making this irresistible and invaluable reading for every teenage girl.

In 2003, Rebecca was asked to write a letter to a friend’s daughter before she started high school – to share some advice on what she thought her friend’s daughter needed to know to survive those joyful but often brutal years. This letter was the seed for her latest book, Find Your Tribe (and 9 other things I wish I’d known in high school), a witty, warm and wise roadmap for girls navigating their high school years.

Following the success of her first book, The Girl Most Likely, Rebecca started receiving emails from hundreds of high school girls around the country seeking advice about how to survive their teenage years. As a result, she provides motivational talks to countless numbers of high school girls on the topics covered in Find Your Tribe and she has twice spoken at the National Young Leaders Convention.

Highly engaging, relevant and inspiring, with a few memorable photos here and there of the author, Find Your Tribe is the little black book for every teenage girl … and a must read for every parent too.

Published by UQP / 1 March 2010 / RRP: $14.95 / Non-fiction paperback
ISBN: 978 0 7022 3772 0

Women of Letters – Melbourne’s news literary event curated by Marieke Hardy and Michaela McGuire #geekgirl

Women of Letters, Melbourne’s newest literary event, is an afternoon that celebrates a diverse range of strong female talent whilst simultaneously raising funds for Victorian animal rescue shelter, Edgar’s Mission. Women of Letters will be held at Bella Union in Trades Hall on Sunday, March 28, 2010 beginning at 2.30 pm.

Curated by Age writers Marieke Hardy and Michaela McGuire, this monthly occasion will bring together five of Melbourne’s best and brightest writers, musicians, politicians and comedians in celebration of the beautiful lost art of letter-writing. 

The afternoon will bring the traditionally private endeavour of letter writing into the public arena, seeing each woman address the topic with their unique blend of insight, humour, lewdness and warmth.

The inaugural March Women of Letters will see musician Angie Hart, Black Text publisher Caro Cooper, the Green Guide’s Lorelei Vashti, television’s Myf Warhurst and respected comedian Judith Lucy each reading a letter they have penned to “The Night I’d Rather Forget.”
 
A rotating roster of the city’s finest musicians and DJ’s will provide a musical interlude, during which time the audience are encouraged to indulge in some letter writing for themselves.

Stamps and envelopes will be provided, and in the spirit of participation attendees are further encouraged to pen short notes to Women of Letters themselves. Michaela McGuire will then use these points of discussion as the basis of a free-wheeling panel chat to conclude the afternoon.

Tickets are just $10 and available at the door – Sunday March 28 at 2.30 pm at Bella Union, Trades Hall, corner of Victoria & Lygon Streets, Carlton South, Melbourne.

Edgars Mission

Female sci-fi writers at Sydney futurian event #geekgirl #outhere #goddesscyborgs

The Topic for March will be – SF by Women Writers that differs from Mainstream SF writing:

Friday night Sydney Futurian SF discussion meeting Dates and Topics are;

March 19 – SF by Women Writers that differs from Mainstream SF writing (as close to Int. Woman’s day as could be organised)

April 16 – Mythological and Religion inspired creatures in SF Stories

(Saturday May 1 – the Katoomba SF&F Gathering of Sydney and Blue Mountains SF&F fans, Writers and Artists)

May 21 – Second Life and other virtual world adventures in SF stories

June 18 – SF stories of Doom, Gloom, Despair, Hopelessness and any other really Bad things

Other 2010 meeting dates include;
July 18, August 20, Sept. 17, October 15, November 19 and December 17

UTS Sydney, under the light sabres / Perspex Deathstar globes.  Meet in the Broadway entrance of the University of Technology Tower Building’s lobby, Sydney, (Australia) at or before 6.30 pm.

More info “Garry Dalrymple” <Garry.Dalrymple@det.nsw.edu.au>

IBM FITT #Melbourne FREE Networking Event – Feb 23, 2010 #geekgirl

IBM FITT Melbourne FREE Networking Event – Feb 23

Hmmmmmm, senior female IBM executives…

   – Janet Matton – IBM Vice President Sales Operations And Executive
   – Nicole Crooks  – IBM Vice President, SO & Global Technology Services
   – Robyn Woodley – IBM Client Director BHP
   – Jane Chen  – IBM Executive IT Architect

The IBM panel will discuss matters related to their careers in the ICT industry, and the challenges and opportunities they see for business in 2010 and beyond.

After the presentations we will have question time for the audience to ask questions to the panel and then networking time and refreshments.

For more information, goto FITT website<>
(Females in Information Technology & Telecommunications)
 .
Date & Times:
Tuesday 23 February 2010
Arrive: 5.30pm
Finish: 7.30pm

Venue:
The Arts Centre
Level 8, 100 St Kilda Road, Melbourne

The Arts Centre is a couple of minutes walk from Flinders Street Station
Or take any tram (except tram no.1) along St Kilda Road and disembark at the
Arts Centre. Stop number 14.