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Author Topic:   Alan Turing, Enigma Code-Breaker and Computer Pioneer, Wins Royal Pardon
Lexxigramer
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From: The Etheric Realms...Still out looking for Schrodinger's cat...& LEXIGRAMMING.♥.. is my Passion!
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posted December 24, 2013 03:19 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Lexxigramer     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Religion has been used to justify oppression, slavery, abuse, rape, even murdering and torturing people.

This kind of atrocity based on religions of bronze age beliefs; is still going on in many places on this planet.

Religious belief of those bigoted fundies in power ruined this man's life just because he was gay.
It is a shame that it took 6 decades to finally pardon and honor this man.

Alan Turing, Enigma Code-Breaker and Computer Pioneer, Wins Royal Pardon

Nearly 60 years after his death, Alan Turing, the British mathematician regarded as one of the central figures in the development of the computer, received a formal pardon from Queen Elizabeth II on Monday for his conviction in 1952 on charges of homosexuality, at the time a criminal offense in Britain.


The pardon was announced by the British justice secretary, Chris Grayling, who had made the request to the queen. Mr. Grayling said in a statement that Mr. Turing, whose most remarkable achievement was helping to develop the machines and algorithms that unscrambled the supposedly impenetrable Enigma code used by the Germans in World War II, “deserves to be remembered and recognized for his fantastic contribution to the war effort and his legacy to science.”

The British prime minister, David Cameron, said in a statement: “His action saved countless lives. He also left a remarkable national legacy through his substantial scientific achievements, often being referred to as the ‘father of modern computing.’ ”

Mr. Turing committed suicide in 1954, two years after his conviction on charges of gross indecency. He was 41. In a 1936 research paper, Mr. Turing anticipated a computing machine that could perform different tasks by altering its software, rather than its hardware.

He also proposed the now famous Turing test, used to determine artificial intelligence. In the test, a person asks questions of both a computer and another human — neither of which they can see — to try to determine which is the computer and which is the fellow human. If the computer can fool the person, according to the Turing test, it is deemed intelligent.

In 2009, Prime Minister Gordon Brown issued a formal apology to Mr. Turing, calling his treatment “horrifying” and “utterly unfair.” But Mr. Cameron’s government denied him a pardon last year.

An online petition urging a pardon received more than 35,000 signatures. The campaign has also received worldwide support from scientists, including Stephen Hawking.

When Mr. Turing was convicted in 1952, he was sentenced — as an alternative to prison — to chemical castration by a series of injections of female hormones. He also lost his security clearance because of the conviction. He committed suicide by eating an apple believed to have been laced with cyanide.

The queen has the power to issue a “royal prerogative of mercy” to pardon civilians, but rarely does so. Mr. Grayling said that Mr. Turing’s sentence would today be considered “unjust and discriminatory.”

Mr. Turing has been the subject of numerous biographies, as well as “Breaking the Code,” a play based on his life that was presented in London’s West End and on Broadway in the 1980s.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/24/world/europe /alan-turing-enigma-code-breaker-and-computer-pioneer-wins-royal-pardon.html?_r=2&


By EMMA G. FITZSIMMONS
Published: December 24, 2013 78 Comments

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Randall
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posted December 25, 2013 11:03 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote

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Lexxigramer
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posted December 25, 2013 05:27 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Lexxigramer     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote

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Randall
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posted February 09, 2014 12:07 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
Sad.

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dadoo
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posted March 21, 2014 05:25 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for dadoo     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
There is suspicion that Apple's logo and rainbow colors come from this story, although Steve Jobs always denied it.
I believe so myself.

I find Turing fascinating.
I wish I was good enough at maths to follow his reasonings in depth.

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Lexxigramer
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posted March 21, 2014 10:37 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Lexxigramer     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote

Turing’s housekeeper found him dead in bed on June 7, 1954, with the half eaten (presumed to be a cyanide laced)apple on his bedside table.

The circumstances of his death are rumoured to have inspired the Apple computer company logo.

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dadoo
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posted March 21, 2014 06:22 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for dadoo     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
He was a Snowwhite fan, hence the apple.
What a human, intellectual and spiritual tragedy.

Edit:
It kinds of bug me he received "Royal Pardon" though.
I mean, he didn't do anything wrong.
Shouldn't it be the other way round?
Like, the country asking for forgiveness?

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PixieJane
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posted March 21, 2014 07:13 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for PixieJane     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by dadoo:
He was a Snowwhite fan, hence the apple.
What a human, intellectual and spiritual tragedy.

Edit:
It kinds of bug me he received "Royal Pardon" though.
I mean, he didn't do anything wrong.
Shouldn't it be the other way round?
Like, the country asking for forgiveness?


Ty for that.

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Lexxigramer
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posted March 22, 2014 01:45 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Lexxigramer     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote

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Randall
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posted May 20, 2014 02:14 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote

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WarriorPrincess7
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posted March 07, 2015 07:28 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for WarriorPrincess7     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
I saw the imitation game today, wow what a brilliant man and truly tragic story, I hope he is at peace his legacy will live on forever.

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Lexxigramer
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From: The Etheric Realms...Still out looking for Schrodinger's cat...& LEXIGRAMMING.♥.. is my Passion!
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posted March 07, 2015 08:14 PM     Click Here to See the Profile for Lexxigramer     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote

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Randall
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posted March 08, 2015 10:21 AM     Click Here to See the Profile for Randall     Edit/Delete Message   Reply w/Quote
quote:
Originally posted by WarriorPrincess7:
I saw the imitation game today, wow what a brilliant man and truly tragic story, I hope he is at peace his legacy will live on forever.

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