Ada Lovelace, First Computer Programmer, Honored By Google
Ada Lovelace, known as the founder of scientific computing, was honored on Google's home page with a doodle on Monday.
Monday, Dec. 10 marked what would have been the early computer whiz's 197th birthday.
In order to highlight Lovelace's accomplishments, Google hosted several illustrations featuring not only the drawings, but also images of computers, mathematics, and music.
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"We hope today's doodle inspires people to find out more about Ada, and about the contributions made by women in general to science and technology," a post to Google's blog read.
Also known by names Augusta Ada Byron and the Countess of Lovelace, the English mathematician worked on Charles Babbage's early computer, the Analytical Engine.
Lovelace went on to write what was later recognized as the first algorithm intended to be processed by a machine, and because of this, she has been deemed the world's first computer programmer.
As the estranged daughter of romantic poet Lord Byron, Lovelace sought comfort in math, according to Wired magazine.
"She was the daughter of the poet Lord Byron, though he had little influence on her life after divorcing her mother," the magazine reported. "Ada's youth is almost a textbook example of growing up as a nerd. She suffered numerous illnesses, including terrible headaches, and a paralyzing bout with measles, all of which led her to pursue a deep interest in education, particularly mathematics, where she excelled."
The visionary died in 1852 at age 36. The Ada programmer language was named in honor of the 19th century pioneer.
Google's homage to Lovelace was not the first attention drawn to the mathematician. Since 2009, Lovelace fans have honored her contributions by celebrating an official Ada Lovelace Day. The event took place on Oct. 16 this year, with next year's event scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 15.
"Ada Lovelace Day is about sharing stories of women, whether engineers, scientists, technologists or mathematicians (STEM), who have inspired you to become who you are today," explained a post on FindingAda.com, the organization behind Ada Lovelace Day.
"The aim to create new role models for girls and women in these male-dominated fields by raising the profile of other women in STEM," it continued.
Lovelace's father Lord Byron is best known for his lengthy narrative poems such as "Don Juan" and "Childe Harold's Pilgrimage."
