Who is Ada Lovelace?
Augusta Ada King, Countest of Lovelace (born in Byron; 1815-1852) is often described as the first computer programmer.
Before computer was even invented, Ada worked with were the ever-evolving plans of Charles Babbage, a 19th century English mathematician, who designed but never built a machine he called Analytical Engine, starting in the 1840s.
The Analytical Engine featured many of the same characteristics that we would recognize as essential to modern general-purpose computer, but it’s probable that the machining techniques of the mid 19th century were inadequate to realize his vision (although a modern effort is underway).
Ada, a strong mathematician herself, was well acquainted with Babbage and the Analytical Engine. She wrote (or possibly co-wrote or edited) an article describing its operations, and outlined an algorithm for the computation of Bernouli numbers. Through modern eyes, this algorithm could be considered a computer program.