Ada Lovelace wrote the first algorithm intended to be executed by a machine, which is why she is considered the first programmer. She also predicted the far-reaching impact that the analytical machine of Charles Babbage, the forerunner of modern computers, will have.
Ada had an unusual upbringing for an aristocratic child. She was born on December 10, 1815, as the daughter of the famous English poet Lord Byron, and his wife, Annabelle Milbank. However, her parents' marriage was not the happiest - soon after Aida's birth, they divorced and her father left London. He died in Greece, when Eddie was 8 years old.
Countess talented in mathematics
Fearing that her daughter would inherit her father's unpredictable nature, Aida's mother tried to direct her to the other side with a very strict upbringing. Although unusual for women at the time, Ada had to study math and science, for which she showed astonishing talent.
As an aristocratic child, she had access to top tutors at the time, and soon formed as a mathematician, but was excellent in other fields as well. In addition to mathematics, she was also an excellent musician and loved literature. One of Aida's greatest role models was Mrs. Somerville - the first woman member of the Royal Astronomical Society.
Even as a young woman, her dream of meeting her came true, and they became very good friends. It was at one of the parties organized by Lady Somerville Ada that she met her future husband, Sir William King. They were married when Eddie was 19, and soon after their marriage he became Earl of Lovelace. Young Ada Byron became known as the Countess of Lovelace, and to this day everyone remembers her as Ada Lovelace.
Collaboration with Charles Babbage
At one of the parties, Ada also meets Charles Babbage, then a highly respected professor of mathematics. He presents her ideas, including the concept of an analytical machine. She then leaves Babbage astonished by her intelligence, because she easily understands what he is telling her. She seemed to understand some of his ideas better than he did.
In 1840, Babbage went to Italy to give a lecture on his analytical machine and some computer concepts, then advanced ideas in mathematics and engineering. A young Italian engineer took notes from the lecture, and they were then published in French. Babbage then begs his friend, Ada to translate the notes into English, so that his ideas reach as many people as possible.
While translating, Ada felt free to add some of her comments to the translation, even her own ideas. She marked the notes with letters from A to G. In them, she emphasized the difference between Pascal's machine, which could be compared to today's calculator, and Babbage's machine, which could be compared to modern computers. In the last, G note, Ada describes an algorithm for an analytical machine for calculating Bernoulli numbers.
It is considered to be the first algorithm ever made with the idea to be applied on a computer, and for this reason it can be considered the first computer programmer. She focused on what we might call "software" applications for the analytical machine today. With the help of Babbage, he finished the work in a few months, and the translation eventually became three times longer than the original text.
The Tragic End
Eddie was twenty-nine years old when her work was published and when she gave birth to her third child. To her great surprise, she suffered a mental and emotional breakdown. Doctors prescribed her a combination of drugs and alcohol, which is considered deadly today.
In delirium, he loses his mind and experiences different visions, believing in some moments that he has the mind of God. She becomes addicted to this combination of drugs, which starts to ruin her life. On top of all that, doctors also state that she has cervical cancer.
However, at one point he manages to quit alcohol. Just to replace it with a new addiction, gambling. She shared her passion for gambling with her great mentor and collaborator, Charles Babbage. Together, they tested mathematical theories about the probabilities of horse racing. Ada has always loved horses, and for Babbage it was a way to get out of debt.
Unlike him, she was unlucky with gambling and had to sell family jewelry to pay off debts. Aida's life went downhill more and more violently, with illness and addiction. Due to numerous scandals and gambling, she lost her reputation, and the methods of treating cancer at that time, which included releasing large amounts of blood, did not help her. She remains tied to the bed and is taken care of by her mother, who does not allow her closest friends to see her.
In one conversation with her husband, she confides in him something that made him leave her and never visit her again. She dies at the age of 36, the same age as her father. She was buried at her request next to him, in the cemetery in Nottinghamshire.
The Great Legacy
Ada Lovelace was a talented genius, a mathematician capable of understanding even the most complex ideas of her time. She made a great contribution to mathematics and computer science. She wrote the first ever published computer algorithm for an analytical machine, and was essentially the first to devise a software concept.
In her honor, the American government named the programming language that she developed in 1979 after her - Ada. She left us a great legacy, which is why we celebrate October 11 as her day, the day of Ada Lovelace.
