Lovelace, Ada
The daughter of Lord Byron, the famous poet and character, Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace was brought up to focus on the sciences, eventually corresponding with Charles Babbage about his Analytical Engine. Her writing, which focused less on Babbage's machine and more on how information could be processed by it, has seen her labeled the first software programmer. She died in 1852.
A selection of excerpts from Ada Lovelace's notes on her translation of Menabrea's
The Analytical Engine, as explained and valuably introduced by Betty Toole.
Alongside plenty of information on Betty Tools' writing (which is worth reading, because the site is littered with relevant quotes), there's a biography and timeline of Ada, as well as an interview with Betty and a discussion of Ada’s modern role.
This biography traces the life of Ada Lovelace, from her mother's attempt to direct her into a scientific, non-poetic life the opposite of her father (the famous Lord Byron) to her death at only 37.
I've included this essay on Ada's life, not just for the biographical content, but because the author recognises and comments on the differing information found in the secondary sources.
Ada Lovelace didn't just translate L. F. Menabrea's
Sketch of the Analytical Engine, she added a set of valuable notes. This is the full text with numerous diagrams and asides, but the page is extremely large and will take a while to load.
