Spread the Joy: Advent 2025: Day 17

On this date in history in 1903, brothers Orville and Wilbur Wright took their epic first flight on the sand dunes of Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. Orville won the coin toss and got to fly first. He was in the air a whole 12 seconds, going a molasses quick 10 feet per second. With some tinkering, the brothers completed 3 more test flights with Wilbur's last flight staying in the air nearly a full minute and having traveled 852 feet 

So, in honor of this occasion, the time seems right to focus on a STEM charity. STEM stands for Science, Technology, Engineering and Math. The culinary arts courses I teach are considered a part of this branch of education as there is a number of scientific and mathematical elements used in the field. But I have already devoted some of my Advent to food, nutrition and agriculture. So let's look at computer engineering. In particular, coding and the need for more females in the industry. 

There are probably 3, maybe 4 women in the field of computer engineering and design that I can name off the top of my head. Ada Lovelace, who's considered the first computer programmer of them all because of the algorithms she developed for Charles Babbage's 'analytical engine', a sort of early calculator. There's actress Hedy Lamarr, whose invention of frequency hopping technology is the precursor to Wi-Fi. There's the 'Hidden Figures', the group of black female engineers who worked at NASA. Although I must admit, the only one of the group that I remember by name is Katherine Johnson. 

And like I said, that is about all I can list. 

So for today's featured charity, I selected Girls Who Code. It was founded in 2012 by Reshma Saujani, a lawyer and Politician that noticed a lack of women in the field of science; In particular, computers and electronics. Noticing a lack of women in the field, Saujani did some research and found that while in the early 90s about 30% of computer engineers were female, that number was declining. By 2024, that number has dropped to less than 1 in 4 in the computer tech industry being women. 

Girls Who Code or GWC seeks to reverse this trend. GWC teaches computer science to eligible students in grades 3-12 through free afterschool clubs, summer immersion programs and training and support for students who continue to earn computer science degrees in college. Mentors who run programs for work prep such as mock interviews, can join the CWC Leadership Academy to learn leadership skills in training the next generation of female coders.

If supporting STEM and STEAM education in our schools is of importance to you, check out their donations page here. Along with a general fund donation, you can sponsor a a student for a year's worth of afterschool coding experience, fund a new club from the ground up or gift students the tools and technology needed for computer and Internet access.

Let's keep the computer science coming with today's Advent song present. Earlier this year, I had a lot of fun with a music guessing game where one of the categories was of famous tunes made to sound like they would have if they were the background music for an Atari video game. Referred to as '8-bit' or 'Chiptune', there are dozens upon dozens of holiday tunes done in this manner. As it might not be everyone's cup of tea, here's a very short minute and 8 seconds long rendition 'Deck the Halls' by the group 8-Bit Universe. If you are a fan, I highly recommend checking them out on their YouTube page.

Enjoy!