Start learning language of the future in an hour

The incredibly popular <i>Minecraft</i> video game was built using Java.

Many of us grew up without them, but most of us can't imagine our lives free of computers and smartphones helping to make things faster, easier and more efficient.

Although they seem smart, computers on their own are not actually very clever. They are however incredibly obedient and will do exactly what you want them to as long as you tell them how.

Computers speak a simple language called binary code which is comprised only of 1s and 0s. With our complex language system, humans find binary code difficult to work with.

To solve this, computer-human interface languages have been developed which help us to translate our conversational language instructions into simple binary code for computers to understand.

There are several of these translation languages around including Python, C, C++, Perl, Visual Basic, Java, Javascript, Ruby and PHP which all essentially do the same thing but are tailored to program different tasks more easily. Ruby and JavaScript are great for building web sites, Java is often used for financial trading and games like Minecraft, and as a scientist I use Python for analysing statistics from my experimental data.

Each language has a trade-off in terms of speed, convenience and levels of detail but they can all be a way to write a set of instructions or a recipe for a computer to follow.

In the 1980s, women made up around 40 per cent of computing degrees and Margaret Hamilton's computer code led to the successful moon landing of Apollo 11. Things have changed a lot since then. In 1985 the trend began to reverse and today, in New Zealand, only 20 per cent of bachelor's degrees in computing are earned by women.

Part of this decline may be caused by images of computer programmers as nerdy, basement-loving males who struggle with social interaction and personal hygiene. But as a female who codes and surrounds herself with other coders, nothing could be further from the truth.

The problem with this stereotype is that it can put off many people from learning to code as it is deemed to be boring, anti-social or too difficult. However learning to code is easy, fun and there is no better time as it's Computer Science Education week.

This global movement aims to teach anyone who wants to learn the basics of coding everything they need to know in an hour. The week-long event includes several free tutorials to choose from, including some with a Star Wars, Minecraft or Frozen theme for the young - and young at heart. For those of you who are feeling social, there are lots of free local events being run by volunteers from the education charities OMGTech!, Code Club and the High Tech Youth Network thanks to sponsorship from Microsoft New Zealand.

To see the events near you, visit www.hourofcode.com. If you can't find an event or just want to learn on your own or as a family, then all of the tutorials are free on the site and suitable for anyone aged 4 and up.

Even if your job is not directly linked to computer science, most jobs will be affected by the need for at least an understanding of programming and coding and you don't have to be good at maths or science to learn the basics. So write your first computer program, build your own website or create a playable game. All it takes is an hour, some enthusiasm and an open mind to call yourself a coder and to start the journey of learning the language of the future.

To get stuck in visit hourofcode.com