PDF Too Useful to Sacrifice: Reconsidering George B. McClellan’s Generalship in the Maryland Campaign from South Mountain to Antietam by Steven R. Stotelmyer in History

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“[Ada Lovelace]; like Steve Jobs; stands at the intersection of arts and technology."—Walter Isaacson; author of The InnovatorsOver 150 years after her death; a widely-used scientific computer program was named “Ada;” after Ada Lovelace; the only legitimate daughter of the eighteenth century’s version of a rock star; Lord Byron. Why?Because; after computer pioneers such as Alan Turing began to rediscover her; it slowly became apparent that she had been a key but overlooked figure in the invention of the computer.In Ada Lovelace; James Essinger makes the case that the computer age could have started two centuries ago if Lovelace’s contemporaries had recognized her research and fully grasped its implications.It’s a remarkable tale; starting with the outrageous behavior of her father; which made Ada instantly famous upon birth. Ada would go on to overcome numerous obstacles to obtain a level of education typically forbidden to women of her day. She would eventually join forces with Charles Babbage; generally credited with inventing the computer; although as Essinger makes clear; Babbage couldn’t have done it without Lovelace. Indeed; Lovelace wrote what is today considered the world’s first computer program—despite opposition that the principles of science were “beyond the strength of a woman’s physical power of application.”Based on ten years of research and filled with fascinating characters and observations of the period; not to mention numerous illustrations; Essinger tells Ada’s fascinating story in unprecedented detail to absorbing and inspiring effect.From the Hardcover edition.