埃达·洛夫莱斯：数字的魅力

陆静

你知道嗎，史上第一位程序员，其实是一位女士，她是19世纪的奇女子——浪漫派诗人拜伦勋爵的女儿埃达·洛夫莱斯。

1 Ada Lovelace was the child of the Romantic poet， Lord Byron. Her mother， who had studied mathematics herself， decided that her daughter would be spared the fathers hobbies by studying math and science， rather than literature or poetry. Young Ada Lovelace showed a genius for mathematics from an early age. She also learned music， drawing， and languages， and became fluent in French.

2 Ada Lovelace met Charles Babbage in 1833 and became interested in the Difference Engine （差分机）， which was created to perform basic mathematical calculations. Up until this point， all math problems had always been solved by hand. The difference machine meant that some calculations could be automated. She also studied his ideas on another machine， the Analytical Engine， which would use punched （打孔的） cards to “read” instructions and data for solving mathematical problems. Babbage himself never wrote about his own inventions， but in 1842， an Italian engineer Menabrea described Babbages Analytical Engine in an article published in French.

3 Ada Lovelace was asked to translate this article into English. This opportunity enabled her to show her academic talent for mathematics. Ada Lovelace didnt just translate the article—she came up with many of her own ideas about how the machine could be adapted to solve even more complex equations. Her notes were the first time that steps to solve certain equations had ever been written down. In other words， Ada Lovelace wrote the very first computer program！ Her notes helped clarify for others how to approach difficult mathematical concepts.

4 In 1852， Ada Lovelace died of cancer. She was buried next to her famous father. More than a hundred years after her death， in 1953， Ada Lovelaces notes on Babbages Analytical Engine were republished after having been forgotten. The engine was now recognized as a model for a computer， and Ada Lovelaces notes as a description of a computer and software.

5 In 1980， the US Department of Defense settled on the name “Ada” for a new standardized computer language， named in honor of Ada Lovelace.

1. What significantly influenced Ada Lovelaces achievement in her early life？

A. She never really knew her father.

B. She was the daughter of the poet Lord Byron.

C. Charles Babbage was impressed by her.

D. Her education was focused on science and math.

2. What did Charles Babbages Difference Engine make easier？

A. Solving math problems.

B. Recording conversations.

C. Creating computer programs.

D. Translating text into other languages.

3. How did Ada Lovelace contribute to computer programming？

A. By translating an Italian article into English.

B. By solving more complex math problems.

C. By writing the first computer program.

D. By working with Charles Babbage.

4. How does the author develop the text？

A. By giving instructions.

B. By making comparisons.

C. By following the order of time.

D. By following the order of importance.

Ⅰ. Difficult sentence in the text

Ada Lovelace didnt just translate the article—she came up with many of her own ideas about how the machine could be adapted to solve even more complex equations. 埃達·洛夫莱斯不仅翻译了这篇文章——她还提出了许多关于如何调整机器以解决更复杂的方程的想法。

【点石成金】本句是一个主从复合句，how the machine could be adapted to solve even more complex equations是how引导的宾语从句，作介词about的宾语。

Ⅱ. Text?centered chunks

rather than 而不是

show a genius for 表现出……的天赋

become interested in 变得对……感兴趣

by hand 手工

come up with 想出

in other words 换言之；换句话说；也就是说

be recognized as 被认为是……

in honor of 向……表示敬意