The World’s First Computer Programmer?
This week has been Computer Science Enrichment week and in Monday’s assembly we heard the extraordinary story of a person regarded by many as the world’s first computer programmer, whose ideas helped shape technology on which we now rely every day.
Augusta Ada Byron on 10th December 1815 into a family that was anything but ordinary. Her father was Lord Byron, but she never knew him— as well as being one of the greatest English romantic poets, he lived an outrageous life of excess that led him into huge debt and involved many scandals. When his daughter was only five weeks old he threw her and his wife out of his house. Ada, as the girl was known, never saw him again. She was raised by her mother, Anne Isabella Milbanke, who was determined to ensure she would have an exceptional education and grow up to be logical and grounded – the opposite of Lord Byron.
In the early 1800s, women were largely excluded from education, but Ada was tutored in mathematics, science, and engineering concepts such as steam-powered machinery. She developed an early fascination with mechanical inventions, at the age of 12 she sketched plans for a flying steam-powered machine inspired by birds, some 15 years before an aerial steam carriage design was patented in 1842.
When Ada was 17, she met Charles Babbage, a renowned mathematician and inventor. Babbage was working on a machine called the Difference Engine, designed to perform mathematical calculations. Babbage’s next project, the Analytical Engine, sparked Ada’s most groundbreaking work. Though never fully constructed during their lifetime, the design of the Analytical Engine was revolutionary for its time, featuring components that are recognisable as the early forerunners of the Central Processing Unit, Memory Store, and input/output systems.
She married the Earl of Lovelace when she was 19, since when she was known as Ada Lovelace. In 1843, she translated a paper about the Analytical Engine from Italian to English but added detailed notes that would define her legacy. Among them was the creation of the first algorithm, which is considered by many as the world’s first computer program.
While many viewed the Analytical Engine as merely a calculator, Ada believed it could go much further, and that it could potentially create music, compose art, or assist in scientific discovery. Her vision of a machine capable of handling data in multiple forms—text, images, sounds—anticipated the capabilities of modern computers. This concept, unheard of in her time, laid the foundation for fields like artificial intelligence and multimedia computing.
Ada’s life was both troubled and brilliant. She faced many obstacles – she was ordered to stay in bed for a year having been paralysed by measles in 1829; she suffered from mental health issues and a gambling addiction; and she lived at a time when women were not expected to have views about maths or science. She also died at just 36 years old, in 1853, and her contribution to computing was forgotten for almost a century. Today, however, Ada Lovelace is recognised as a pioneer in computer science. The programming language Ada, used in systems like aviation and healthcare, is named in her honour and while the Analytical Engine was never actually built, it became an inspiration for future generations of computer scientists who brought the idea to life. Her story also shows the power education can have, in her case even in a world where the odds were stacked against her; it supports the belief that in some ways the only thing that limits us is the scale of our ambition; and it highlights the fact that perseverance matters and that we can overcome most obstacles in life.
Have a nice weekend.
Best wishes
Michael Bond
