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The story of Ada Lovelace
Cardano will be an eternal memory of Countess Ada Lovelace. She was an English mathematician, gambler, writer, and mother of three children. She is known for being the first person in the world to recognize that computers could be used for more than just calculations. Let’s explore who Ada Lovelace was.
It was December 10, 1815, and Lord Byron was expecting the birth of the desired boy. He was disappointed when Lady Byron gave birth to a girl. The child was named after Byron’s half-sister, Augusta Leigh, and was called Ada by Byron himself.
Less than a year after her birth, her father decided to divorce. He was disturbed by the fact that the mother, Anne Isabella Noel Byron, 11th Baroness Wentworth, and Baroness Byron, had not brought a son into the world. Ada had never seen her father again since he died in 1824 when she was eight years old. Her mother remained the only parent figure in her life. Until she was twenty, she was forbidden to look at any portrait of her father. Ada has often been ill since her early childhood. At the age of eight, she suffered from migraines. In June 1829 she was paralyzed after suffering measles. She was then forced to rest in bed for almost a year, which probably delayed her recovery. By 1831 she was able to move on crutches.
Despite frequent illnesses, she developed her mathematical and technical skills. At the age of twelve, she decided she wanted to fly. She proceeded reasonably and methodically, with imagination and passion. The first step, in February 1828, was the production of wings. She considered different sizes and materials for making wings, such as paper, oil-filled silk, wires, and feathers. She studied the anatomy of birds to estimate the correct proportions of wings and bodies. The last step would be to integrate steam as propulsion for flying.
In adulthood, she recognized Mary Somerville of the Royal Astronomical Society, which she considered to be her role model, especially because she was also a mathematician. Somerville also introduced her to the company of Charles Babbage, whom she met in 1833. Since then, both have been intensely correspondent. Lovelace also met other prominent personalities of the time, such as Andrew Crosse, Sir David Brewster, Charles Wheatstone, Charles Dickens, and Michael Faraday. Around 1834 she was often seen at the court and…
