Alan Turing Research Paper

Alan Turing

The life and long-lasting impact of an exceptional individual

Alan Turing was one of the most important figures in pioneering computer science, and a brilliant mathematician and outstanding codebreaker. He played a fundamental role in breaking the Nazi Enigma code and in so doing, had quite a large impact on the course of World War 2. His contribution significantly shortened the war and saved countless lives.

Alan Mathison Turing, (23 June 1912 – 7 June 1954) was a pioneering British computer scientist, cryptographer, mathematician, logician and engineer, whose life was one of secret triumphs, overshadowed by public tragedy. He is perhaps known today for his part in breaking the Enigma Code during World War 2, but had by that

It did not take long before his talents were recognised. In 1926, Turing would go on to attend school at Sherborne in Dorset. At age 15 Turing could solve complicated calculus problems in his head, before he was even taught basic calculus. His talents were not always received enthusiastically, due to some educators placing more emphasis on the classics. His ingenuity guided him along his own path, rather than those required by his educators. Despite this, Turing continued to excel at the subjects he loved. While attending Sherborne, he encountered the work of Einstein, which he not only grasped, but managed to condense his theory of relativity for his mom in nothing more than a single

Turing relished such challenges. A day after the UK declared war with Germany, Turing, who was still working part-time as a professor, reported to Bletchley Park for full-time work on breaking the Enigma code. His cooperation in this effort was quite simply vital to the war effort. Not only did he make the first breakthroughs in the Naval Enigma code, allowing British food, arms and supplies to be shipped across the Atlantic, but along with Gordon Welchman, constructed a machine to obliterate the German Enigma code. This machine was called the Bombe, after an Earlier Polish code breaking machine. Using the fact that certain messages, such as weather reports often had common phrases, the code-breakers would guess a short phrase, that might potentially have been in the message. Ironically, one of the phrases that was most commonly found in these messages was, “Heil Hitler,” which was often found towards the end of the code. Code-breakers would then input their guess into the Bombe, which then did a sweep of the near infinite daily settings which the Enigma machine could have been set to. By using a technique of contradiction and remarkable mathematical insight, the code was eroded and eventually broken. The Bombe, which was in many ways a pioneering computer in the making, could solve these codes infinitely faster than pen and paper code breaking. On a good day, the machine