This Week's Day-by-Day Picks

Monday, November 28, 2005
Contrary to popular belief, the computer was not invented in a garage by freethinkers -- that was the cute little PC, which came much later. The original machines (vacuum-tube beasts that required air-conditioned buildings, not suburban two-doors) sputtered to life through the decades-long work of people like Alan Turing, a brilliant British mathematician and the very definition of solitary genius. Working from the landmark hypothetical paper he wrote in 1937, "On Computable Numbers," he constructed "Turing devices" to break the Enigma code used by the Germans during World War II. But his glory was short-lived: A gay man, Turing was arrested in 1952 and charged with committing acts of gross indecency, and in 1954 he ended it all by eating a cyanide-laced apple, inspired by the film Snow White. David Leavitt tells Turing's story in the book The Man Who Knew Too Much; he reads at 7 p.m. at A Clean Well-Lighted Place for Books, 601 Van Ness (at Golden Gate), S.F. Admission is free; call 441-6670 or visit www.bookstore.com.

Tuesday, November 29, 2005
"Scree! Blip blip!" Then a whirring, and a backbeat like a hammer hitting sheet metal tacked to plywood: These are the sounds of local duo Eats Tapes. Well, that and a peppy Roland synth, pounding out a joyful little rhythm. The semi-low-tech act's new wave color scheme and mildly mysterious air keeps it a lighthearted but never goofy dance sensation in an overly serious hipster scene. Marijke Jorritsma and Gregory Zifcak's love of analog sounds and gadgets (think pre-digital proto-rave music or early Aphex Twin) usually manifests itself in private homes, so enjoy this chance to see the pair "out." Japanther shares the stage at 9:30 p.m. at the Hemlock Tavern, 1131 Polk (at Post), S.F. Admission is $6; call 923-0923 or visit www.hemlocktavern.com.

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