More about the book
This is an utter joy, but also, to hazard a semi-educated opinion, mathematically sound. The 19th century was when mathematics started getting weird, and the idea that a machine could have an emergent intelligence began to take root. Babbage and Lovelace were, in a sense, ahead of their time; Padua brings them into ours. She is also honest enough to raise the question of whether Lovelace’s contributions and reputation have not been inflated by a desire to squeeze a woman into mathematical history; and the way she answers this question is extremely plausible. For Padua has done her research: she has teased out the connections between Babbage, Lovelace and what would seem to be the whole of Victorian culture and society – and done so in a way that appears almost effortless on the page, her light, easy graphic style an excellent vehicle not only for deep and complex thought, but for excellent, and sometimes excellently corny, jokes. This is a book to reread, not just read. – Nicholas Lezard
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