Turing Machine From Imitation Game Film [Image via Black Bear Pictures]
31. Charles Babbage & Alan Turing
Most Famous For Inventing:The Computer
We should state for the record that Alan Turing & Charles Babbage did not work together and likely never even knew each other. Yet we still put them in the same place on our list because both men can be credited, in some form, for inventing the computer. Charles Babbage is often given the most credit in this department, as his “Difference Engine” was technically an early computer.
[Image via Telegraph/Image via Medium]Later called the Analytical Engine, it was able to incorporate arithmetic logic units, and control flow via conditional branching & loops. It also used an integrated memory. This made it “Turing-complete,” which pretty much meant that it could recognize or decide other data-manipulation rule sets. Of course, the term comes from Alan Turing and, well, his Turing Machine. This was used to form the original general-purpose computer. Both men did a lot for the computer, so obviously both should be credited with its invention.