Once a Technical Woman - Always a Technical Woman

I attended the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing conference this past week In Baltimore. The core audience for the conference was computer science or information technology students, academics, and early career professionals. I’m much further along - being in the field for 40 years and now starting down other paths. Still - the sessions prompted some reflection on my part and I’ll be doing several blog posts over the next week as I get my thoughts organized and written down.

The first key take away (for me) is that once a technical woman….always a technical woman. 

It doesn’t matter if I am working in the field or if I have gone on to other things. Being technical is entwined in everything I do. It’s blended with the way I choose to live and incorporated into my role as a matriarch. Here are some things that have happened since I left my computer-related career.

• I’ve transitioned to use my Kindle or other electronic media for an increasing amount of my reading. My piles of physical books are going to be a challenge to finish!
• I no longer use paper grocery lists. Instead I use the OurGroceries app on my Kindle (and PC).
• I still enjoy science and technology articles….they dominate the news feeds I have set up for myself. It is a luxury to set all the priorities based on my own interests rather than making choices based on what I needed to learn for my career or employer. The ‘gleanings’ for my Saturday post come from the news feeds I read regularly and always include quite a few technology or science related items.
• When I looked through the courses offered on Coursera there are so many of interest….I still tend to migrate toward technical ones. It’s exciting to have this new way to take a class. I’ve signed up for one that will start in a few weeks. The price is certainly right (free)!
• If I had to choose a favorite STEM (Science, technology, engineering, math) topic at this moment it would be botany. I haven’t done the stats - but I image almost half my blog posts have some linkage to plants.
• When I travel - I enjoy knowing science and technology related info about the places I visit (geology, physical geography, flora and fauna, power generation and meteorology) 

So - I am pretty sure that for me

Once a technical woman….always a technical woman

is true now and for the rest of my life. Later this week I’ll talk about a second reflection prompted by the conference: the distressing statistics about women in science and technology…..and why we should care.

Kindle Fire - 8 Months of Experience

I’ve had my Kindle Fire  since last November - long enough to settle into a pattern of the way I will use it. I’ve experimented with application that I still use occasionally but there are three main ones that have made the device worthwhile for me:

Reading. I’ve read over 100 novels - mostly checked out from the public library. Sometimes I use the highlight feature to mark passages. The Kindle makes it easier to read in poor lighting situations although I find having some ambient light other than the Kindle screen reduces eyestrain. The brightness of the screen makes it more comfortable for me to read without my glasses; this aspect actually makes it a better form than physical books for me. Probably over 90% of my Kindle use is for this activity and I’m finding it challenging to work down my pile of physical books! I also find that I can put it on a music stand and read while I bounce on my Swopper Chair  to get a little exercise while I read.

Grocery list. My husband and I have settled on the OurGroceries app since we can use it from all our devices (including the Kindle) and then I can use it when I am in the store to mark off items as I get them. I don’t spend a huge amount of time in the app but I do use it frequently and those little bits of time add up.

Email. I have one of my email accounts directed to my Kindle so that I can send and receive emails any time I have connectivity. I have reduced the paper I carry with me when I travel because I can simply turn on the Kindle and have all the details. I also send recipes via email to this account since I actually prefer using the Kindle for my recipe to a cook book; the Kindle is less bulky and it stays positioned on the stand much better than a bulky book (I use a stand for it to keep it above the spills and splatters of cooking).

There are times I wish

• it was a bit lighter in weight
• the screen did not smudge as easily
• the Marware case was some other color besides black (somehow black tends to blend in with the background making it hard to spot the Kindle on some surfaces)

but most of the time I’m just enjoying the device. It has been worth its $199 price tag.

Quote of the Day - 1/15/2012

You can never get a cup of tea large enough or a book long enough to suit me. - CS Lewis

~~~~~

I resonate with this quote…particularly on a cold winter’s day. My ‘cup’ is an insulated mug and quite large…but I still get up to refill it periodically. The book is a big fat one I bought used. I have a shelf of them that I am working my way through slowly since the majority of my reading is now done electronically (Kindle Fire or PC ). Still - the feel of a book…turning the pages…knowing there are more good ones near at hand - it’s something to look forward to and then savor. The location has changed over the years until now my favorite “cup of tea with book” times are spent in front of an east facing window in a comfy rocker.

Favorite activities are sometimes transitory during our lives but not this one - or at least that is true for me and, I suspect, CS Lewis. How about for you?