--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: FATHER OF THE COMPUTER Alan Turing was…" description: "\"“FATHER OF THE COMPUTER Alan Turing was sneered at for not being a tough guy, a he-man with hair on his chest. He whined, croaked, stuttered. He used a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af8/eduardo-galeano-1015_chess-game_father-of-the-computer-alan-turing-was-s_2505687.jpg" --- # FATHER OF THE COMPUTER Alan Turing was sneered at for not… ![“FATHER OF THE COMPUTER Alan Turing was sneered at for not being a tough guy, a he-man with hair on his chest. He whined, croaked, stuttered. He used an old necktie for a belt. He rarely slept and went without shaving for days. And he raced from one end of the city to the other all the while…” quote by Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af8/eduardo-galeano-1015_chess-game_father-of-the-computer-alan-turing-was-s_2505687.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af8/eduardo-galeano-1015_chess-game_father-of-the-computer-alan-turing-was-s_2505687.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af8/eduardo-galeano-1015_chess-game_father-of-the-computer-alan-turing-was-s_2505687.jpg) > ““FATHER OF THE COMPUTER Alan Turing was sneered at for not being a tough guy, a he-man with hair on his chest. He whined, croaked, stuttered. He used an old necktie for a belt. He rarely slept and went without shaving for days. And he raced from one end of the city to the other all the while concocting complicated mathematical formulas in his mind. Working for British intelligence, he helped shorten the Second World War by inventing a machine that cracked the impenetrable military codes used by Germany’s high command. At that point he had already dreamed up a prototype for an electronic computer and had laid out the theoretical foundations of today’s information systems. Later on, he led the team that built the first computer to operate with integrated programs. He played interminable chess games with it and asked it questions that drove it nuts. He insisted that it write him love letters. The machine responded by emitting messages that were rather incoherent. But it was flesh-and-blood Manchester police who arrested him in 1952 for gross indecency. At the trial, Turing pled guilty to being a homosexual. To stay out of jail, he agreed to undergo medical treatment to cure him of the affliction. The bombardment of drugs left him impotent. He grew breasts. He stayed indoors, no longer went to the university. He heard whispers, felt stares drilling into his back. He had the habit of eating an apple before going to bed. One night, he injected the apple with cyanide.”” [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Turing’s brilliance and personal struggles highlight the cost of societal intolerance on innovators. **In simple terms:** Turing was brilliant but suffered because of prejudice. Key Takeaway Recognize and support diverse talent. Themes innovation prejudice identity Mood somber reflective Type historical inspirational When to use this quote - war effort - tech development - personal health - legal persecution Key Concepts cryptography computer science LGBTQ+ rights Questions to Reflect On - What would society gain by embracing difference? - How can we protect innovators from discrimination? A Different Perspective His personal hardships were exacerbated by social stigma, not his work. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Alan Turing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/alan-turing-273811/) [Chess game](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chess-game/) [Computers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/computers/) [Love letters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love-letters/) [Medical treatment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/medical-treatment/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) [Second world war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/second-world-war/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) [Tough guy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tough-guy/) [Trial Turing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trial-turing-1105284/) [Turing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turing/) [Turing Pled](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turing-pled-1105283/) [Turing Sneered](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/turing-sneered-1105282/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [World war](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/world-war/) ## Related quotes > [“Alan Turing proposed the Turing Test: a computer is intelligent if you can't tell it from a human when you talk with it. 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He gave us a very, very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-dyson/alan-turing-gave-us-a-mathematical-model-of-digital-computing-that/) [George Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-dyson/) > [“Like Alan Turing, Zuse was educated in a system that focused on a child's emotional and philosophical life as well as his intellectual life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-zuse/like-alan-turing-zuse-was-educated-in-a-system-that-focused-on-a/) [Konrad Zuse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-zuse/) > [“here’s a toast to Alan Turing born in harsher, darker times who thought outside the container and loved outside the lines and so the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-harvey/here-s-a-toast-to-alan-turing-born-in-harsher-darker-times-who/) [Matt Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-harvey/) > [“Alan Turing’s halting problem: you can’t know if the cells will all die off without running the game until they do die off. Thus,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-bookstaber/alan-turing-s-halting-problem-you-can-t-know-if-the-cells-will-all/) [Richard Bookstaber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-bookstaber/) > [“told me, that the Apple logo was an homage to Alan Turing, the British computer pioneer who broke the”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walter-isaacson/told-me-that-the-apple-logo-was-an-homage-to-alan-turing-the-british/) [Walter Isaacson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/walter-isaacson/) > [In World War II, a British mathematician named Alan Turing led the effort to crack the Nazis' communication code. He mastered the complex German…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-k-simpson/in-world-war-ii-a-british-mathematician-named-alan-turing-led-the/) [Alan K. 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Once the hard-won principles of reason and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-hitchens/so-this-is-where-all-the-vapid-talk-about-the-soul-of-the-universe-is/) [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) > [“Will we even know when the first AGI is created? The first machine to become conscious may quickly achieve a reasonably clear understanding of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calum-chace/will-we-even-know-when-the-first-agi-is-created-the-first-machine-to/) [Calum Chace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calum-chace/) > [“So are you conscious?” The alien robot—the skin the Miller construct was using—shrugged. It was strange how well the gesture translated. “Don’t know. Seems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-s-a-corey/so-are-you-conscious-the-alien-robot-the-skin-the-miller-construct/) [James S.A. Corey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-s-a-corey/) > [“What a familiarity with the construction of Turing test bots had begun to show me was that we fail - again and again- to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-christian/what-a-familiarity-with-the-construction-of-turing-test-bots-had/) [Brian Christian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-christian/) ## More by Eduardo Galeano > [In the struggle of good against evil, it's always the people who get killed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/in-the-struggle-of-good-against-evil-it-s-always-the-people-who-get/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [Poets and beggars, musicians and prophets, warriors and scoundrels, all creatures of that unbridled reality, we have had to ask but little of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/poets-and-beggars-musicians-and-prophets-warriors-and-scoundrels-all/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [And one fine day the goddess of the wind kisses the foot of man, that mistreated, scorned foot, and from that kiss the soccer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/and-one-fine-day-the-goddess-of-the-wind-kisses-the-foot-of-man-that/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [“THE HE’S ARE SHE’S In 1847, three novels excite England’s readers. Wuthering Heights by Ellis Bell tells a devastating tale of passion and shame.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/the-he-s-are-she-s-in-1847-three-novels-excite-england-s-readers/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [Charity, vertical, humiliates. Solidarity, horizontal, helps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/charity-vertical-humiliates-solidarity-horizontal-helps/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [Soccer, metaphor for war, at times turns into real war.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/soccer-metaphor-for-war-at-times-turns-into-real-war/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [I don't believe in charity. I believe in solidarity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/i-don-t-believe-in-charity-i-believe-in-solidarity/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [In the Age of the Almighty Computer, drones are the perfect warriors. They kill without remorse, obey without kidding around, and they never reveal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/in-the-age-of-the-almighty-computer-drones-are-the-perfect-warriors/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [I'm not asking you to describe the rain falling the night the archangel arrived; I'm demanding that you get me wet. Make up your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/i-m-not-asking-you-to-describe-the-rain-falling-the-night-the/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [From the weak nations' point of view, it is better if there are many powerful countries then if there are just a few. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/from-the-weak-nations-point-of-view-it-is-better-if-there-are-many/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [“WALLS The Berlin Wall made the news every day. From morning till night we read, saw, heard: the Wall of Shame, the Wall of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/walls-the-berlin-wall-made-the-news-every-day-from-morning-till-night/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [There are those who believe destiny rests at the feet of the gods, but the truth is that it confronts the conscious of man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/there-are-those-who-believe-destiny-rests-at-the-feet-of-the-gods-but/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [The poet, distracted by politics, asks of poetry that it make itself useful like metal or flour, that it get ready to stain its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/the-poet-distracted-by-politics-asks-of-poetry-that-it-make-itself/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [Every two weeks, a language dies. The world is diminished when it loses its human sayings, just as when it loses its diversity of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/every-two-weeks-a-language-dies-the-world-is-diminished-when-it-loses/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) > [“In the Greek Olympics, women, slaves, and foreigners never took part. Not in Greek democracy either.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-galeano/in-the-greek-olympics-women-slaves-and-foreigners-never-took-part-not/) [Eduardo Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) [Explore all 221 Eduardo Galeano quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-galeano/) ## More Chess game quotes > [For 'Inhuman,' it's a 'chess game' series. You have a lot of pieces moving different ways at once, and it's about what they do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-soule/for-inhuman-it-s-a-chess-game-series-you-have-a-lot-of-pieces-moving/) [Charles Soule](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-soule/) > [Modern Chess is too much concerned with things like Pawn structure. Forget it, Checkmate ends the game](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nigel-short/modern-chess-is-too-much-concerned-with-things-like-pawn-structure/) [Nigel Short](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nigel-short/) > [I had a toothache during the first game. In the second game I had a headache. In the third game it was an attack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/siegbert-tarrasch/i-had-a-toothache-during-the-first-game-in-the-second-game-i-had-a/) [Siegbert Tarrasch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/siegbert-tarrasch/) > [Blessed be the memory of him who gave the world this immortal game](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-george-gardiner/blessed-be-the-memory-of-him-who-gave-the-world-this-immortal-game/) [Alfred George Gardiner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-george-gardiner/) > [I stopped taking notes on my Palm Pilot and started playing the little chess game.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-ebert/i-stopped-taking-notes-on-my-palm-pilot-and-started-playing-the/) [Roger Ebert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-ebert/) > [Later, I began to succeed in decisive games. Perhaps because I realized a very simple truth: not only was I worried, but also my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mikhail-tal/later-i-began-to-succeed-in-decisive-games-perhaps-because-i-realized/) [Mikhail Tal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mikhail-tal/) > [Human affairs are like a chess game. 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I hug him hard. "There's no chess game for me without you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katy-evans/remy-you-re-my-king-i-hug-him-hard-there-s-no-chess-game-for-me/) [Katy Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katy-evans/) > [The game of Chess is not merely an idle amusement; several very valuable qualities of the mind are to be acquired and strengthened by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/the-game-of-chess-is-not-merely-an-idle-amusement-several-very/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [Life is like a chess game one wrong move could cost you the game. Think before you make any moves so you will continue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dl-watson/life-is-like-a-chess-game-one-wrong-move-could-cost-you-the-game/) [DL WATSON](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dl-watson/) > [The truth of the matter is that chess is not the game of life because life does not ever happen the way you strategize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-reynolds/the-truth-of-the-matter-is-that-chess-is-not-the-game-of-life-because/) [Jason Reynolds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-reynolds/) > [I feel like my mum is in heaven sharing a cup of tea with Lady Fate and plotting my life out like a chess…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-frost/i-feel-like-my-mum-is-in-heaven-sharing-a-cup-of-tea-with-lady-fate/) [Jenny Frost](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-frost/) [Browse all 161 Chess game quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/chess-game/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“FATHER OF THE COMPUTER Alan Turing was sneered at for not being a tough guy, a he-man with hair on his chest. He whined, croaked, stuttered. He used an old necktie for a belt. He rarely slept and went without shaving for days. And he raced from one end of the city to the other all the while concocting complicated mathematical formulas in his mind. Working for British intelligence, he helped shorten the Second World War by inventing a machine that cracked the impenetrable military codes used by Germany’s high command. At that point he had already dreamed up a prototype for an electronic computer and had laid out the theoretical foundations of today’s information systems. Later on, he led the team that built the first computer to operate with integrated programs. He played interminable chess games with it and asked it questions that drove it nuts. He insisted that it write him love letters. The machine responded by emitting messages that were rather incoherent. But it was flesh-and-blood Manchester police who arrested him in 1952 for gross indecency. At the trial, Turing pled guilty to being a homosexual. To stay out of jail, he agreed to undergo medical treatment to cure him of the affliction. The bombardment of drugs left him impotent. He grew breasts. He stayed indoors, no longer went to the university. He heard whispers, felt stares drilling into his back. He had the habit of eating an apple before going to bed. 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