Klára Dán von Neumann

&gt; They were at a casino in Monte Carlo when Dán met her future husband, John von Neumann, for the first time. He explained that he had perfected a way to ensure that you could win roulette every time, and promptly lost all his money trying to prove his point.<p>Magnificent. I can&#x27;t explain why I&#x27;m so delighted by this, but the mental image makes me happy.

&gt; Her family was wealthy, and often held parties where Dán would meet many different people from various stations in life.<p>Family wealth is often ignored in various scientists&#x27; biographies. It makes it easier to do science without the pressures of having to think about where the next cheque is going to come from.

I&#x27;ve seen her unpublished memoir, A Grasshopper in Very Tall Grass, quoted in quite a few places and it definitely seems worth publishing, such a shame no publisher has taken any interest in it yet.

My Dad knew John von Neumann at the Institute for Advanced Studies at Princeton. My Dad liked him, saying von Neumann worked really late, played loud German music, and was eccentric. I wonder is Klara was as eccentric?

“For decades after this, society would devalue the work of programming, which ultimately allowed women to be a large part of the workforce.” – fascinating

interesting death. walked into the ocean?

Much is said about John von Neumann but I had not yet heard about Klara. Thanks for sharing this.<p>The technical report on the ENIAC is an awesome read.

good book with some related anecdotes: The MANIAC

&gt; She died in 1963 when she drove from her home in La Jolla to the beach and walked into the surf and drowned. The San Diego coroner&#x27;s office listed her death as a suicide.<p>now that&#x27;s impressive.