Alan Turing is recognized by most as the father of computer science. His contribution to the field includes the Turing Machine concept, a simple mathematical model for computing. The General Turing Machine, an elaboration of the simple Turing Machine, is the basis for most modern computers in the English-speaking world.

Born on June 23, 1912, Turing grew up in England and attended Cambridge University from 1931 to 1934. He then enrolled in the graduate program at Princeton University and gained a PhD under the supervision of Professor Alonzo Church. Together, they formulated the Church-Turing thesis, another mathematical theory about computation and the limits of what can be computed by an algorithm. He was awarded a PhD in 1938.

The world was on the verge of World War II. Turing returned to England and in 1939 began work with British Intelligence at Bletchley Park, where he worked on deciphering German encryptions. The Germans had devised a mechanical encryption device known as the “Enigma” and were using it to encrypt Army, Navy and Air Force communications. By using the Enigma, they hoped to communicate confidentially between headquarters and the field.

The British Navy sank a German U-Boat and recovered one of the Enigma machines. Turing the mathematical genius led a team at Bletchley Park that used the device and broke the Enigma code, giving Britain a critical intelligence advantage: Whenever Berlin sent instructions to the U-Boats in the Atlantic, England intercepted the messages, read them and responded accordingly. That meant that the British Navy could track the U-Boats and sink them.

Turing was a hero, but unfortunately he had problems after the war. A homosexual, he was persecuted by the British authorities who prosecuted for homosexual acts, a crime at that time in England. He was sentenced to medical treatment, which took its toll on him physically. Depressed from the treatment, he apparently committed suicide in 1954, a tragedy that still haunts many in Britain.