Latest / Star Trails: From Backyard Astronomy to Cosmic Wonder
From Gears to Code: Computing the Cosmos
In this episode, we explore the role of computers in astronomy. From the ancient Antikythera Mechanism and the human “computers” of the Harvard College Observatory, to the rise of electronic machines, supercomputers like the Cray-2, and modern programming languages like Fortran and Python, we trace the evolution of how we’ve learned to model and understand the universe.Along the way, we dive into concepts like data reduction, radio interferometry, distributed computing with SETI@home, and the growing role of artificial intelligence in making new discoveries. We also take a hands-on detour…
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