ada the enchantress of numbers by betty alexandra toole

at present deposited in the Museum at South Kensington' (Babbage, frontispiece). Left to right: (a) From 'a woodcut of a small portion of Mr Babbage's Difference Engine No.

Even more important in directing her talents was her meeting with Charles Babbage, to whom she was perhaps introduced by her older friend, the science writer and mathematician Mary Somerville (1780-1872). One of her tutors, at a later stage, was the logician Augustus De Morgan (1806-1871), Professor of Mathematics at University College (or London University as it was then called). The idea was to guard against any chance of Ada's following in her father's footsteps, and the ploy seemed to succeed: she soon developed a keen interest in mechanical objects, and proved capable of mathematical study. The child was therefore brought up solely by her mother, who saw to it that she was educated in the sciences rather than arts. But the estrangement had followed swiftly, and was a bitter one. Born at Piccadilly Terrace, London, on 10 December 1815, she was the only legitimate child of Lord Byron, having been born to his wife Anne, Lady Byron, shortly before their estrangement. ĭetail of Ada Lovelace from the full-length portrait in the Science Museum, painted by Margaret Sarah Carpenter (1793-1872) in 1836.Īda Augusta Byron was described by a future daughter-in-law (her son Ralph's second wife) as 'a pretty and attractive woman of exceptional talent, but of somewhat eccentric character' (Lovelace 165), all of which is incontrovertible, but somehow fails to do enough justice either to her looks or her unusual abilities.

On display are letters and a lock of her hair as well as Charles Babbage's amazingly prophetic projects. This free exhibition makes an inspiring and sometimes touching introduction to her life, and examines her contribution to early computer science. Many thanks to the Science Museum, Kensington, for those taken during the current 2015-16 Ada Lovelace Exhibition.

Ada the enchantress of numbers by betty alexandra toole