World's first computer programmer

山東 孫啟祿

主題語境：人物 篇幅：294詞 關鍵詞：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 (癡迷) 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.

?語篇解碼

本文是一篇記敘文。埃達·洛夫萊斯為巴貝奇的分析機設計了解決復雜數學問題的指令，被稱為世界上第一位程序員。

?語言學習

Ⅰ.語料薈萃

Ⅱ.語句分析

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.當其他客人注視著這臺美麗的儀器工作時，拜倫小姐雖然年輕，但她理解它的工作原理，并看到了這項發明的巨大魅力。

【點石成金】本句是一個主從復合句。Miss Byron understood...of the invention 是主句；While other...beautiful instrument 是時間狀語從句；young as she was 是as 引導的讓步狀語從句。

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，也就是她所稱的“詩意科學”將她定義為最偉大的科學家之一。

【點石成金】本句是一個主從復合句，句子的主干是it is...that...引導的強調句。as she called it 是as 引導的非限制性定語從句。

?語言運用

Ⅰ.例句仿寫

1.我在公共汽車站等車時，路對面駛過了三輛公共汽車。(while)

____________________,three buses went by in the opposite direction.

2.盡管他很年輕，但是他會說好幾門外語。(as)

____________________,he can speak several foreign languages.

Ⅱ.寫作實踐

假定你是李華，請根據下列表格中的內容提示，為校報的《英語園地》寫一篇英語短文，介紹世界上第一位計算機程序員。

注意：

1.詞數80左右；

2.可以適當增加細節，以使行文連貫。

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