Seventy years after the first Fortran manual was published on 15th October, the programming language remains a cornerstone of scientific computing. Over its seven decades of use, Fortran has supported critical infrastructure and technological advances in nuclear engineering, weather and climate forecasting, and materials science. It continues to be the go-to language in these domains and others.
To celebrate Fortran's contributions to science and engineering, the Institute of Computing for Climate Science (ICCS) at the University of Cambridge will host a 'Celebrating 70 years of Fortran' event at the Science and Industry Museum in Manchester, United Kingdom, on 1st December 2026. The main workshop runs from 14:30 to 18:15 in the museum conference suite and will be followed by an evening drinks reception in the exhibition hall, including a demonstration of the 1940s experimental computer, 'Baby'.
The workshop takes the form of a retrospective, with a keynote address from Damian Rouson of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory on how far Fortran has come. Lightning talks will cover current developments and community initiatives, and an open breakout discussion will look toward the next 70 years. Opportunities exist to submit lightning talks, posters and breakout discussion topics.
Attendance is free of charge, thanks to the support of funders and sponsors. Registration closes on 9th November 2026. The event is primarily in person, with an option to join remotely via Zoom. Full programme details and submission instructions are available on the event webpage.
Source: Hacker News · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing