Alan Mathison TURING

23 June 1912 - 07 June 1954

Alan TURING was born in London in 1912. He studied mathematics at King's College, Cambridge, where he was a gifted student. After graduating, he worked as a research fellow at Princeton University in the United States.
In 1939, Turing returned to the United Kingdom to work at Bletchley Park , a top-secret codebreaking center during World War II. He led a team of mathematicians and engineers who developed techniques for breaking the Enigma cipher, which was used by the German military. Turing's work at Bletchley Park is credited with shortening the war by several years.
After the war, Turing continued his work in computer science and artificial intelligence. He developed the Turing machine, which is a theoretical model of computation that is still used today. He also proposed the Turing test, which is a test of a machine's ability to exhibit intelligent behavior equivalent to, or indistinguishable from, that of a human.
Turing was a controversial figure in his lifetime. He was gay, which was illegal in the United Kingdom at the time. In 1952, he was convicted of "gross indecency" and was forced to undergo hormone therapy. He died in 1954, at the age of 41, from cyanide poisoning. His death was ruled a suicide.
Turing's contributions to science and technology were immense. He is considered to be one of the most important figures in the history of computer science. His work has had a profound impact on the development of artificial intelligence, and his ideas continue to be studied and debated today.
In 2013, the British government posthumously pardoned Turing for his conviction of "gross indecency." He was also awarded the Order of Merit, one of the highest honors in the United Kingdom.
Turing's life and work are a testament to the power of human ingenuity. He was a brilliant scientist who made groundbreaking discoveries that have had a lasting impact on the world. His story is a reminder that even in the face of adversity, it is possible to achieve great things.