Born on December 10th, 1815, the Right Honorable Augusta Ada Byron was mostly famous for the scandal of her mother leaving her father.

And, naturally, for the scandal of her father pretty much still breathing.

She had only been a month old, when Lady Byron had taken her to her grand-parents' home. She never saw her father again, though he did ask after her and ensured that her material needs were met.

No-one should assume at this point that Ada was close to her mother. Annabella called her 'it' and dumped her on her grandmother Judith Millbanke.

This was in addition to the procession of nannies, governesses and tutors. Annabella hired only the best logical minds available. This included Augustus De Morgan, the mathematician responsible for the eponymous De Morgan's Laws.

He was really impressed with his fledgling charge. Even while still a young girl, Ada was referred to by De Morgan as 'an original mathematical investigator, perhaps of first-rate eminence.'

Not only mathematics, but music too filled the young Ada's childhood. They were all staples of logic, but that isn't to say that her creative spirit was entirely crushed. In fact, it took a particularly vivid imagination to picture the future as the infant countess did.

When she was just thirteen years old, Ada Lovelace set her mind to devising a flying machine. She had it all mapped out, just awaiting the skill of an engineer to put it all together.

Apparently no-one gave it a go. After all, she was only a child, and a girl at that! Who could possibly conceive of such outlandish notions as an airplane actually working?

In fact few people seemed to do more than give lip service to her genius, until that chance encounter with Charles Babbage.