World's first computer programmer

2023-08-19山东孙启禄

疯狂英语·新读写 2023年7期

山东孙启禄

主题语境：人物篇幅：294词关键词：first,programmer

1To say she was ahead of her time would be an understatement.Ada Lovelace earned her place in history as the first computer programmer—a full century before today's computers emerged.

2She couldn't have done it without British mathematician,inventor and engineer Charles Babbage.Their cooperation started in the early 1830s,when Lovelace was just 17.Babbage had drawn up plans for a machine he called the Difference Engine—essentially,a giant mechanical calculator.In the middle of his work on it,the teenage Lovelace met Babbage at a party.

3There,he showed an incomplete prototype (原型) of his machine.According to a family friend who was there:“While other visitors gazed at the working of this beautiful instrument,Miss Byron,young as she was,understood its working,and saw the great beauty of the invention.”

4It was mathematical obsession (痴迷) at first sight.The two struck up a working relationship and eventual close friendship that would last until Lovelace's death in 1852,when she was only 36.Babbage abandoned his Difference Engine to brainstorm a new Analytical Engine—in theory,capable of more complex number crunching—but it was Lovelace who saw that engine's true potential.

5The Analytical Engine was more than a calculator—its complex mechanisms and the fact that the user fed it commands via a punchcard meant the engine could perform nearly any mathematical task ordered.Lovelace even wrote instructions for solving a complex math problem,should the machine ever see the light of day.

6Many historians would later consider those instructions the first computer program,and Lovelace the first programmer.It's her work in“poetical science”,as she called it,that defines her as one of the greatest scientists.

Reading Check

1.What can we learn from the second paragraph?

A.Lovelace attended the party held by Babbage.

B.Lovelace met Babbage by chance at a party.

C.Babbage invited Lovelace to attend his party.

D.Babbage had just built the Difference Engine.

2.Which of the following words can best describe Lovelace?

A.Careful.

B.Generous.

C.Honest.

D.Hard-working.

3.What does the underlined phrase“struck up”in paragraph 4 most probably mean?

A.Kept.

B.Broke.

C.Started.

D.Extended.

4.Why is Lovelace considered the first programmer?

A.She wrote the instructions for the Analytical Engine.

B.She saw the Analytical Engine's true potential.

C.She understood the difference in the Analytical engine.

D.She could perform nearly any mathematical tasks.

➢语篇解码

本文是一篇记叙文。埃达·洛夫莱斯为巴贝奇的分析机设计了解决复杂数学问题的指令，被称为世界上第一位程序员。

➢语言学习

Ⅰ.语料荟萃

Ⅱ.语句分析

1.While other visitors gazed at the working of this beautiful instrument,Miss Byron,young as she was,understood its working,and saw the great beauty of the invention.当其他客人注视着这台美丽的仪器工作时，拜伦小姐虽然年轻，但她理解它的工作原理，并看到了这项发明的巨大魅力。

【点石成金】本句是一个主从复合句。Miss Byron understood...of the invention 是主句；While other...beautiful instrument 是时间状语从句；young as she was 是as 引导的让步状语从句。

2.It's her work in“poetical science”,as she called it,that defines her as one of the greatest scientists.正是她的工作，也就是她所称的“诗意科学”将她定义为最伟大的科学家之一。

【点石成金】本句是一个主从复合句，句子的主干是it is...that...引导的强调句。as she called it 是as 引导的非限制性定语从句。

➢语言运用

Ⅰ.例句仿写

1.我在公共汽车站等车时，路对面驶过了三辆公共汽车。(while)

____________________,three buses went by in the opposite direction.

2.尽管他很年轻，但是他会说好几门外语。(as)

____________________,he can speak several foreign languages.

Ⅱ.写作实践

假定你是李华，请根据下列表格中的内容提示，为校报的《英语园地》写一篇英语短文，介绍世界上第一位计算机程序员。