History of Colossus Computer and Alan Turing

Colossus Computer
At one point, he started to develop a digital computer dubbed the "Turing machine." The key was to
instruct the computer properly and then for it to perform the tasks. He believed that an "algorithm"
could be developed to solve any problem.
After the war, Turing worked on various machines that would replace or supersede human
intelligence, the inspiration said to be the loss of a young love in his life. He wrote a paper in 1950
now known as the " Turing Test" which evaluates a machine's intelligence, a test still considered the
standard by which mechanical intelligence is evaluated.
In his 1936 paper on computable numbers, Turing reformulated Kurt Goedel's 1931 results on the
limits of proof and computation.
Colossus Computer and Turing
Military historians say that Turing's work in breaking the German's Enigma code machine during
World War II shortened the war by two to three years, aside from saving lives and averting more
catastrophe from happening.
Quantum Leaps by Jon Balchin, Capella, London, 2004
Improved models were later installed. Experts today think that a total of 10 Colossus machines were
built. The fact that it helped break the Enigma code was the breakthrough that instantly became the
greatest secret of the Second World War. This meant that the Allies knew exactly what the Germans
planned to do before they did it, an utmost important as it helped the Allies decide where to invade
on D day.
Alan Turing is considered the father of modern computer science. He worked as a cryptographer,
decoding codes in one of the British government's top-secret location at Bletchley Park.
Alan Mathison Turing was born in London on June 23, 1912. Early on in his life, he showed his
interest in science and scientific genius was evident. In his early teens, he encountered Einstein's
work which greatly interested him. Later, he even extrapolated Albert Einstein's queries of Isaac
Newton's Laws of Motion. In 1931, he entered King's College, Cambridge University, where he
focused on mathematics and re-creating the work of other scientists.
His homosexuality was not an issue during the war, but in general, it was looked down on after the
war as the political and emotional landscape changed with the development of Great Britain's
alliance with the United States and the development of the Cold War.
The 100 Greatest Inventions of All Time, by Ton Philbin, Citadel Press, New York, 2003
During the 1920s, the Germans created the "Enigma code" machine, which led them to believe that
their coded messages concerning military and other top secret operations were beyond being
decoded. The machine, which resembled a typewriter, was capable of doing millions of calculations
in milliseconds, and the secret codes that controlled them were regularly changed everyday.
Sources:
His acquaintances included John von Neumann, Ludwig Wittgenstein and Alonso Church.
Early Life of Alan Turing
Turing undertook the construction work of a special-purpose electronic machine all the way. In
January 1943, he headed up a team of scientists whose specific goal was to try to break Enigma
code. To do so, the team developed a computer called the "Colossus" comprising 1,500 vacuum
tubes.
Chambers Biographical Dictionary, edited by Una McGovern, Chambers, 2002
German's Enigma Code Machine
Alan Turing Machine
Thanks to Turing, the Colossus machine was one of the world's earliest programmable electronic
digital computers. Today Turing's computer designs, as he described them in his day, are still what
computer specialists utilize.
He might have been feted and revered for what he did, and yet, at the age of 42, his heart broken
and his mind in disarray due to his homosexuality. It's not certain if this brilliant scientist committed
suicide or not.
Alan Turing after World War II