From Alan Turing to Harvard Computer Science: How Programming Has Changed

Alan Turing’s story about programming is cited by many people because it depicts how the gay community is stigmatized. His contribution cuts across disciplines such as cryptography, biology, mathematics, and artificial intelligence.

Turing’s work was initially unrecognized but he later discovered the Turing machine that facilitated the cracking of Enigma code in the world of programming. Programming has changed in complexity and exponentially over the years due to the willingness and the ability of people to apply the knowledge. 

Turing machine

The chronological stages of Turing’s work include mathematics, code-breaking, and artificial intelligence. Alan Turing studied mathematics at Cambridge University’s King’s College, where he concluded his work with a research paper titled “On Computable Numbers.”

This paper marked his beginning of understanding the mathematical basics, which enabled him to carry out some experiments. Turin wanted to prove some facts logically and mathematically by assuming a machine to run instructions, like what best Apple laptops do. 

The Turing machine can read data and instructions from a tape and write to that tape. This computing machine is a prototype used today to represent mathematics in a computer. 

Code-breaking

Turing progressed with his programming career in the area of cryptography during the Second World War. At the British Secret Service where he was working, Turing was given the task of code-breaking together with other mathematicians. The idea was to “break” into the Enigma machine, a complex electro-mechanical machine used for encrypting orders.

The encoding rules could change constantly and this prompted Turing to design “bombes” to cycle through numerous Enigma settings to ease the coding process. Today, computer science learners are required to emulate Alan Turin by making efforts to solve complex problems. When it comes to essay writing, they can seek help from professionals for guidance. 

Writing computer science essays may be difficult due to the complexity of topics such as coding and programming. Maybe you are looking to do some research on computer science developments but are not sure about the structure and format. Find computer science essay samples on WritingBros and get inspired on how to write yours independently. All you need to do is to study the samples and relate them to the target computer science essay topic. The experts have helped many students with their essays, thereby enabling them to write quality essays and continue with their education easily. 

Artificial intelligence

Turing collaborated with Don Bayley to come up with the idea of having a mechanical brain that could solve problems as humans. He incorporated computations in his ideas to describe how a machine works in an abstract way.

According to Turin, the brain function could be regarded as a system of computation working with a set of algorithms and data sets. The algorithms could be implemented in an electronic, cellular, or mechanical form.

Turin could easily distinguish between hardware and software as it happens in the world of computers today. The Turing machine uses the principle of artificial intelligence to read instructions from a hardware device, which is the tape. 

Turin used a computing machine to simulate the mathematical model and demonstrate artificial intelligence capabilities. His work was regarded as the starting point to “artificial life” involving simulating systems on a computing device and applying human reasoning. 

Lessons from Turing’s life

Alan Turing was a mathematical genius and a unique innovator who played a role in advancing programming. Based on his work, success depends on the ability and willingness of people to work together as they seek solutions to problems. The push, the arguments, safety net, and the emotional support that the team members accord each other are important, just like intelligence. 

One of the most effective ways of filtering during hiring is by giving people a tasty to perform as it happened during the code-breaking process. Coding and design practices can facilitate hiring because it enables candidates to demonstrate their practical capabilities beforehand. 

The main goal of Turing was winning in the war rather than just code-breaking. Leaders should ensure that their team does not lose focus or deviate from the main goal. They should focus on guiding their team towards achieving a common goal no matter the hindrances. 

Conclusion

Alan Turin’s legacy will remain because the internet and computers have changed over the years through his contributions. Disciplines such as psychology and cognitive science are founded on computations in phenomena description. The technology derived from Turing’s work enables people to re-examine computer science, identify loopholes and come up with advanced computing capabilities. Turin’s legacy should be honored as the source of innovations and as a way of dealing with complex day-to-day problems. 

Author’s Bio:

Brandon Kryeger works as a writer for a tech company where his job is to prepare technical documents, product tutorials and website content. Besides his job, he freelancers for an academic writing site that helps students who lack writing skills in doing their college essays. His free time is for biking, swimming and reading novels.