Ada Lovelace Day

Today is Ada Lovelace Day, when we celebrate the first ever computer programmer, Ada Lovelace, and blog about our favorite woman in technology (Pledge to blog here! Even though it's a little late).

A few months ago, I read an article on Yoky Matsuoka, a professor at the University of Washington. She's working on creating prosthetic hands and other devices that take commands directly from the brain. But she's not only doing that. She started a nonprofit company, the "YokyWorks Foundation", wrote books--one that encourages girls to go into math and science--and is a mother of three. She has an amazing story, and it moved me greatly.

I also have to add my admiration for Felicia Day, who is in a hilarious webseries about a group of gamers called The Guild. Look it up on youtube! I love that she is a successful woman in a field previously dominated by men, and still finds time to love video games.

I would have written a more lengthy, well-written blog but time got away from me today...

Of Novels and Britain

Happy Pi Day! (3.14.10)

I'm overdue to write another blog. In the past week I finished reading the first draft of my novel, straight through, without writing any notes, just to get the feel of it. I tried my best to get out of "writer" mode and into "reader" mode, but it was a bit difficult because I knew what was going to happen. Occasionally I would cringe about wording, or forgetting to put something in, but I tried to forget about whatever bugged me and told myself to remember it later when I read it again. I actually enjoyed the ending, and wanted to share the draft with some friends--who read fantasy fiction and haven't been told anything about my novel yet--to get their opinions on it. I thank them wholeheartedly for offering to take on such a hefty amount of reading, especially since pieces are missing and parts are confusing because some things are inconsistent... anyway, I'm grateful. The first friend on my list is reading it right now. Hearing that she's really enjoying it makes me immensely happy, and gives me hope about being published someday.

I don't think I've mentioned it on my blog, but I'm applying for schools in the UK (specifically Scotland), to transfer to directly. It's been a lifelong dream of mine to travel there for a length of time, and if I go to school, I will get the opportunity to see if I want to live there after school, and if I do, I'll get more job prospects because I'll already be there. I'm so, so excited... anything UK-related is interesting to me these days. Right now it's mainly awesome TV shows and music. Or should I say, "brilliant"? :)

Photo: The picture I took of Big Ben from the Eye of London. Good times... can't wait to go back.