What did the poet, Lord Byron have in common with the computers we have today?
Probably nothing personally, but he was the father of Lady Augusta Ada Byron Lovelace, who became a pioneer in early computer technology.
The story goes that Lord Byron left his wife and daughter when Augusta was just an infant. In the tradition of society of that period of history, she was strictly raised by her mother and educated at home in the classical subjects of that time.
Augusta demonstrated a great affinity for mathmatics and while still a teenager, married Lord King in 1835 who later became the Earl of Lovelace. He helped her in her interest in mathematics and through him, was introduced to Charles Babbage.
Now, Charles Babbage had invented a calculating machine that is considered by most as being the first device that had computing capabilities and was christened The Analytical Engine. This machine could compute equations to 20 decimal places and worked on a system of rods and levers.
Lady Lovelace became enthralled with the device, and in 1842 she translated a paper about the engine from French to English and added many of her own thoughts to the translation. She was the first person to describe terminology such as Subroutines and Loops – concepts accepted today in almost every computer language and yet about one hundred years before their implimentation.
Mr. Babbage and Lady Lovelace became close friends and partners for many years in their joint effort with the Analytical Engine.
Lady Lovelace never received true recognition for her efforts because of the anti-feminist attitudes of that time. She was also a compulsive gambler on horse races. History does not record whether she used the Analytical Engine to predict the outcome of any of those races.
The story ends sadly as Lady Lovelace developed cancer and died at the age of 36.