Alan Turing may not be the most well-known name in science, but the consequences of his work impact us everywhere, every day.
He was heavily involved in decrypting messages during the Second World War, and out of this grew what was arguably the world’s first electronic computer. Often referred to as the founder of the discipline of computer science and also of Artificial Intelligence, his ideas are present in every web site, mobile phone and almost every electrical appliance we use today.
Without his work (and that of his co-workers) we would not have landed man on the moon in 1969, nor discovered the Higgs Particle a few days ago.
Exhibitions
This year is the centenary of his birth, and if you are based in the UK, or are planning to visit this summer, there are several great exhibitions that you may be interested in:-
Codebreaker – Alan Turing’s Life and Legacy at the London Science Museum
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/visitmuseum/galleries/turing.aspx
Alan Turing and Life’s Enigma – The Manchester Museum, Manchester
http://www.museum.manchester.ac.uk/whatson/exhibitions/alanturingandlifesenigma/
The Life and Works of Alan Turing – Bletchley Park (the home of the UK’s World War II CodeBreakers).
http://www.bletchleypark.org.uk/
Web Sites
The Alan Turing website by Andrew Hodges is at http://www.turing.org.uk/turing/
Books
Andrew Hodges is also the author of Alan Turing: The Engima, which is an excellent biography of him.
The Code Book is Simon Singh’s best-selling book about cryptography, and the The Code Book on CD-ROM is an interactive version for Windows including a virtual Enigma machine and lots of information about how the Enigma machine was cracked at Bletchley Park.
And Finally…
Our new edition of Higgs Force is about to go to the printers and should be available by the end of July. Pre-order a signed copy at no extra charge, or buy it for the Kindle now.
