Saturday 5 July 2014

BCS event (Bedford and Northants branches) Family Day visit to Bletchley Park

British Computer Society (Bedford and Northants branches) Visit to Bletchley Park – Family Day
 
 
Date: Sunday, 20 July 2014
 
ThemeBletchley Park – The National Museum of Computing – Family Day
 
Time:  Doors open at 10.30am for an 11.00am start
 
Location:  The National Museum of Computing, Bletchley, Milton Keynes MK3 6EB (http://www.tnmoc.org/)
 
Abstract
 
You are warmly invited to take part in a Family Day in July at Bletchley Park’s National Museum of Computing (TNMOC) on Sunday 20 July.  Bring all the family – there will be activities suitable for children of all ages..
 
This event is for members of BCS Bedford and Northampton branches and their families. 
 
 
TNMOC enables visitors to follow the development of computing from the ultra-secret pioneering efforts of the 1940s through the mainframes of the 1960s and 1970s, and the rise of personal computing in the 1980s - including a newly rebuilt and fully operational Colossus, the world’s first electronic programmable computer.
 
TNMOC receives no government or lottery funding and you will be impressed by the enthusiasm of the staff involved in the project including the many volunteers who regularly give up their valuable time to ensure that this ever growing collection is restored and maintained.
 
You will need to register at http://www.ticketsource.co.uk/date/111246.  It would be a good idea to register NOW since the event is completely free for the first 40 people who register (20 people from each branch).  Note that children below the age of 6 years are welcome but will not be included in these numbers (we still need their details for catering purposes). 
 
There will be a small charge for people who wish to attend above this number (unless there are cancellations).  If you are unable to register free on the www.ticketsource.co.uk website, you can register your interest on the British Computer Society website’s https://events.bcs.org/book/1166/ .
 
Parents attending with children under 6 year olds will need to send a separate email to groups@hq.bcs.org.uk with the Subject Line: BCS Bedford Bletchley Park Event with the following details
Name:
Any special requirements such as dietary: 
 
Luncheon and drinks will be provided free of charge.
 
A base room will be made available for use during the day with tea, coffee and water freely available all day.  The LEGO will be kept in this room so that those who do not complete the competition in the morning will have the opportunity to try it in the afternoon. 
 
Agenda
 
10.30am       Registration and refreshments
 
11.00am       Welcome
Tour of the LEGO-DUPLO Building with activities for children including a LEGO competition (build a vintage  computer from LEGO blocks)
OR
Guided Tour of ‘The National Museum of Computing’
 
12.30am       Luncheon
 
After lunch       
  • Free-flow through ‘The National Museum of Computing’.  You are free to wander at will and enjoy all the interactive displays.  There are a multitude of activities suitable for all ages - not least vintage games consoles, a host of other games and also coding opportunities on the BBC Micro, in Scratch and on the Raspberry Pi (in its Fuze guise).
  • Tour of the Colossus and Tunny Galleries
  • View of the world's oldest original working digital computer – the Harwell Dekatron computer aka ‘WITCH’
  • Women in Computing                         
 
The agenda is still being finalised but will include a family quiz between Bedford and Northants branches.  Let’s hope that the sun continues to shine so we can get out the giant lawn chess set!  
 
 
How to get there
The National Museum of Computing is located on the Bletchley Park Estate, near Milton Keynes.  The post code is MK3 6EB.  When using a sat-nav please enter Sherwood Drive, Bletchley, as the postcode may take you to the wrong location.
 
At the Main Gate of Bletchley Park ask for The National Museum of Computing in Block H.  There are parking spaces there and parking is free.
 
For further information see http://www.tnmoc.org/visit/getting-here.
 
Disabled Access
The museum has wheelchair access to all galleries and displays, and there is a unisex disabled toilet near the TNMOC Shop.

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