Ada Lovelace Day

It’s funny, at significant family gatherings (Canada Day, Christmas, New Year’s, etc.), my family was always big on posing interesting questions to go around the table so that people could discuss different topics. A lot of the time, when I was a kid, I wouldn’t have a good answer, simply because I didn’t have that many people (other than Batman, of course) that I really understood. One of these types of questions occurred a couple of years ago, and the question was, “Which historical figure has had an influence on your life?”

My Answer? Lady Ada Lovelace

1. Who is Ada Lovelace? – Augusta (Ada) Byron King (Lady of Lovelace) was the daughter of Lord Byron, who was one of the most famous English poets (yes, that one) and Lady Ann Byron. Due to how Lord Byron lived his life, Lady Byron was determined to ensure that her daughter, Ada, would not spend her life with her head in the clouds. This had the interesting effect of enabling Ada to receive a highly scientific education. Her scientific education had the effect of making her completely obsessed with Math and science, as well as learning how technology (such as it was in the early 1800s) worked. She was a part of the same social circles as Charles Babbage, who is known for inventing the Difference Engine, which was the first iteration of an automatic calculator. They became fast friends and then contemporaries who enjoyed working together.
2. Why is she important – While the difference engine was good, it could only calculate one thing at a time. Babbage had an idea of a machine that could analyze multiple calculations at once. He was having trouble with the math, so he coordinated with his friend Ada, and she helped him sort out most of the problems. The paper that they worked on together was reviewed by an Italian named Luigi Federico Menabrea. When Charles Babbage received the review, it was in Italian, and he couldn’t read it, so he had Ada translate it. Not only did she translate the article, but she also made mathematical notes and corrections to the original. Her translations were published, and it is truly telling that while the actual review is only about 20 pages long, the rest of the 150-page book is entirely Ada’s work.
3. Her influence on Technology – Ada’s influence on technology isn’t strictly overt, but it is substantial. When Alan Turing was working on the Enigma code-breaking Machine, the mathematics he used was based on Ada’s work. Because the Turing Machine, derived from those calculations, became the precursor to modern computers, Ada’s legacy will live on forever. Also, when the US military in the 1980s needed a coding language that would allow each branch to communicate securely, they used a programming language called Ada, which was named after the Lady herself due to its ability to remain secure and incorruptible.
4. Her influence on me – Let’s be honest, I work with computers, so I hope that her influence on me is evident. That being said, it was because of Ada’s math that everything else, all the computers, smartphones, tablets and anything else controlled by a computer can very likely trace their “Code heritage” to the math that Ada designed and Alan Turing applied. As my primary job involves working with computers (and blogging), being able to use a computer has a huge influence on my life. There is also a great story about Ada visiting France to see the Jacquard loom system, which was a series of looms working simultaneously. She and Babbage were working on the math for the Analytical Machine, and she is rumoured to have mentioned how interesting it would be if they could get multiple Analytical Machines to work together in the same way. That kids, is the first ever thought about the internet as we know it today. As you are reading this online, that is a big influence for you as well.

Ada Lovelace has had a significant effect on all of us. While her influence may not be overt, it’s definitely had an effect on our society at large. From talking to people around the world, conducting video calls during the COVID lockdown, or even something as simple as a video game developer reaching a larger audience, the Math that Ada came up with has caused a massive shift in our society. Think about how many times you use a computer throughout your day (aside from reading your favourite tech blog) and think of what you would have to do if you didn’t have a computer. Today is Ada Lovelace Day, and I choose to celebrate the mathematician who helped lay the groundwork for the computer revolution and the digital age.

What historical figure has had an influence in your life?

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