Ideas worth spreading

The greatest machine that never was

1,279,087 views |

John Graham-Cumming |

TEDxImperialCollege

• March 2012

Computer science began in the '30s ... the 1830s. John Graham-Cumming tells the story of Charles Babbage's mechanical, steam-powered "analytical engine" and how Ada Lovelace, mathematician and daughter of Lord Byron, saw beyond its simple computational abilities to imagine the future of computers.

Computer science began in the '30s ... the 1830s. John Graham-Cumming tells the story of Charles Babbage's mechanical, steam-powered "analytical engine" and how Ada Lovelace, mathematician and daughter of Lord Byron, saw beyond its simple computational abilities to imagine the future of computers.

This talk was presented to a local audience at TEDxImperialCollege, an independent event. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

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About the speaker

John Graham-Cumming

John Graham-Cumming

Computer programmer

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Computer programmer John Graham-Cumming keeps geek history alive by raising awareness for its heroes and their inventions.

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This talk was presented to a local audience at TEDxImperialCollege, an independent event. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

Read more about TEDx.