From Zero to (Super)Computing—A science culture card game!
Montréal, May 1, 2023—The Calcul Québec team invites you on a journey through time with the card game From Zero to (Super) Computing. Composed of 40 illustrated cards, this game is for anyone who is curious!
In this game, you not only encounter the first pocket calculator, the abacus, the zero, the keyboard, the transistor, the optical fibre, but also events that have marked our collective imagination such as the Space Odyssey, Watson’s victory in Jeopardy, or the anecdote of the first real computer bug.
“Supercomputers did not appear overnight! They are the result of many scientific discoveries and inventions. We want to spark people’s curiosity with cards that make these concepts more accessible and fun.” explains Valérie Harvey, who is in the lead for the project and head of communications at Calcul Québec.
“Several experts on our team had to revise the content because dating and explaining certain discoveries turned out to be complex and challenging. A lengthy but necessary process according to Daniel Stubbs, analyst at Calcul Québec and member of the design and revision team. We also added content on the cards to give more educational value to the 40 cards.”
Why create a free and accessible scientific culture game?
Technologies and scientific research are interconnected and we can no longer talk about scientific culture without including computing technologies. “The desire to make computer science known to a wider public comes first from a desire to enrich scientific culture in Québec and Canada. It is an important issue for our society,” states Suzanne Talon, CEO of Calcul Québec.
About the game
From Zero to (Super)computers is a game created by Calcul Québec in collaboration with Art’M Créateurs associés.
Ce projet est soutenu par le ministère des Relations internationales et de la Francophonie du Québec et le ministère de l’Europe et des Affaires étrangères de la République française, dans le cadre de la Commission permanente de coopération franco-québécoise.
- The game can be downloaded for free on Calcul Québec’s website.
Contact :
Valérie Harvey
Responsable des communications
Calcul Québec
communications@calculquebec.ca
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About Calcul Québec
Calcul Québec is a non-profit organization (NPO) whose members are academic institutions and research centres. We keep the research community competitive on a national and international scale by providing access to cutting-edge digital infrastructures and ensuring that researchers have the necessary skills to use them.
Calcul Québec is a regional partner of the Digital Research Alliance of Canada and, as such, collaborates with the other regional partners (Acenet, Compute Ontario and WestGrid). We are working closely as a federation to build the future of the digital research ecosystem in the country. Finally, Calcul Québec hosts several research projects funded by the Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI).
