Ada Lovelace timetraveling, calculating the number pi. Sorry, Doctor Who still doesn't exist. Just like Christmas it's what you make of it. (Image 1843 Magazine) |
Me so Mistress Supreme bla bla bla. Don't make me laugh. It's a bit like referring to yourself as a stable genius. If people call you "The Enchantress of Number", you've got my instant attention. Now that's what I call a honorary title, so who is she?
When the Bank of England decided to put a scientist on the new £50 note, I knew it had to be Ada Lovelace. Meanwhile, the words "Bank of England" suddenly made me wonder why they call it Brexit. Successful scientists inevitably claim to stand on the shoulders of giants, but what if you an original one? Mrs. Lovelace is exactly that. Her accomplishments can easily be compared to for instance Eratosthenes, a Greek scholar of the third century BCE, who very accurately calculated the circumference of the earth. (He was of by a mere 0.16%, feel free to do a little jaw dropping.)