343. Ada was the first computer programmer, female assistant to Charles Babbage
Babbage got the glory, but Ada Lovelace did the background calculations slog. As a female she was overlooked -- until Alan Turing of Bletchley Park recognised her important contribution to computing
Ada was the daughter of Lord Byron, fashionable poet and philanderer, who absconded to Greece, never to return to his family in England. Ada’s mother, Annabella, employed a Cambridge scholar to tutor her daughter in mathematics and astronomy.
In 1833 Ada, aged 17, met Charles Babbage, 42. She was fascinated by his explanation of the ’Difference Machine’ he had invented. They became lifelong friends and Ada worked on the calculations which drove Babbage’s machines. But Babbage lacked the funds to fully develop his next prototype, the 'Analytical Engine’.
Meanwhile Ada married the aristocratic Earl William King, making her Countess Lovelace. They produced three children.
Later, in 1843, Charles Wheatstone provided the money to publish Ada Lovelace’s written notes which explained how Babbage’s machines were programmed. She also collaborated with scientist Michael Faraday.
But Ada’s health was deteriorating and she died in 1852, aged 36. Her notes remained forgotten until Alan Turing discovered them. His colleagues at Bletchley Park gave her due recognition as the world's first computer programmer.
She is commemorated with ‘Ada Lovelace Day’ on the second Tuesday in October. (The date is somewhat arbitrary, set to avoid a clash with university exams, public holidays etc.)
Ada had a secret vice
She used her mathematical knowledge attempting to calculate the outcome of horse races. But she lost her family's fortune, including pawned diamonds, betting on the wrong horses at Epsom.
Report #343.
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