The Calculating Passion of Ada Byron

by Joan Baum

Traces the life of Ada Lovelace, Lord Byron's daughter, describes her mathematical education, and assesses her contributions to computer science

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction

153 pages, Hardcover

First published December 1, 1986

Reviews

[Kris · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was disappointed with this book. Considering that the title was "The Calculating Passion..." there was very little passion to be found in the book. It was a rather dry read, mostly a series of quotes from letters by, to and about Ada. (For the uninformed, Ada Byron, Lady Lovelace is considered the world's first computer programmer, as she devised algorithms for Charles Babbage's Analytical Engine - an early computer prototype.) After reading this book I really don't know much more about Ada and her life - certainly there are no insights into the person of Ada, herself. The book read as if it were an extended version of some history major's MA thesis or something. Very disappointing. Read it only if you are desperate for anything Ada-related.

[Meredith Allady · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reads like a thesis--which it may well have been. Usually I love quotations and footnotes and think the more the merrier, but the author used so many--and they were often so short, just a word or two--that I felt like it bogged the narrative down without providing any true insight into the person being quoted. Maybe it is the fault of the sources available on this subject (which, as egotistical as many of the characters involved in this narrative plainly were, I find hard to believe), but I am a reader deeply interested in this period of English history, and yet I came away from this with no real sense of the era, or of who these people were, or even what Babbage's Engine was supposed to do.

[Krista · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some good info, but overall dry. It felt like the author both wanted to limit enthusiasm for Ada, but still give her credit that had been denied her for so long. Also, there were many times in the book I could feel the author pushing to be clever, from chapter titles to turns of phrase in the book.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this book to learn more about Ada and expected it to be highly academic. Ada is a fascinating woman in science and I always appreciate learning about previous scientists and thinkers.