LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
Past Out: Who Was Alan Turing? |
by Wik Wikholm |
British mathematician Alan Turing invented the field of computer science in 1936before computers even existed. He went on to create machines that broke secret German codes during World War II and contributed to the Allied victory over the Nazis. Yet, none of his achievements protected him when police discovered he was a homosexual. Turing's mathematical talent was obvious when, at 13, he enrolled at Sherbourne, an upper class boarding school, but teachers there considered him a problem student. The faculty believed that a broad education was the best preparation for England's elite, but "problem student" Turing was a specialist who hated any subject that was not science or math. One English teacher decried his "unswerving inexactitude and slipshod, dirty, work" on his report card and other teachers worried about his future. In spite of his "faults," Turing survived Sherbourne and went on to Cambridge. There, he met other students who shared his passion for mathematics. One was a math whiz named James Atkins, a man who appealed to Turing physically as well as mentally. Though the two never fell in love, their sexual friendship lasted for several years. At the time, many English homosexuals kept their sexuality secret, but Turing was open to close friends. As Turing learned more about mathematics, he became absorbed by what was then a central question among theorists. Essentially, the question was whether the rules of mathematics could be absolutely proven. In 1936, when he was just 24, Turing published a paper that answered the question. The answer was "no," but non-mathematicians have been more affected by the way Turing answered the question than by the answer itself. Turing based his argument on an imaginary machine that automatically solved mathematical problems. Turing showed that even if the machine's operator knew what all of the machine's inputs were and exactly how the machine was designed, he could not predict the behavior of the machine. This proved the paper's point, but more importantly, the "Turing machine" was the first mathematical description of a computer. Turing continued his work in theoretical mathematics and tinkered with building computing devices for the next three years, but in 1939, Great Britain declared war on Germany and needed Turing's help. The Germans used secret codes that British intelligence analysts could not crack, and Turing was asked to join an expanded code-breaking team. On Sept. 4, 1939, Turing arrived at a top-secret installation called Bletchley Park, outside a small country town. There he designed a decoding machine based on his theory, and by May 1940, a prototype was finished. The first machine was imperfect, but technical innovations led to improved machines that worked consistently. The messages Turing and his team decoded helped Allied forces win the war, especially the war in the Atlantic. The navy used decoded communications to track the positions of the German U-boats that harassed shipping between the United States and England and keep the vital supply line open. While Turing was working at Bletchley Park, he met a mathematician named Joan Clarke. The two became inseparable friends, and even though Turing told her about his "homosexual tendencies," she said yes when he proposed marriage in spring, 1941. The engagement lasted through the summer, but Turing broke off the engagement in the fall to spare his fiancee the pain of marriage to a homosexual. After the end of the war, Turing continued his work designing computers, first at the National Physical Laboratory and later at Manchester University. In Manchester, Turing discovered a cruising area popular with working-class men. He met Arnold Murray there and invited him to visit him later at his home just outside Manchester. Murray accepted Turing's invitation and spent the night. Turing offered Murray money the next morning, but Murray refused it on grounds that he was not a "renter." A few weeks later, Turing's home was burglarized. When he discovered the burglary, he called police to report the crime, but he did not tell them that he suspected that Murray was involved. Later he confronted Murray, who denied his accusations, but fingered a friend named Harry. Turing and Murray went to the police the next day and told them about Harry. When police interrogated Harry, he told them Murray and Turing had a sexual relationship. Police interrogated Turing at his home, and he confessed everything. At his short trial he pled guilty to "gross indecency." He was offered a choice between prison time and chemical castration, and he chose the latter. He endured estrogen injections that suppressed his sex drive and caused him to develop breasts from 1952 to 1953. On June 8, 1954, Turing was found dead in his bed. The coroner was called but his investigation was perfunctory. Though there was no note, the jar of cyanide solution he found told the whole story.Wik Wikholm produces http://gayhistory.com, an introduction to modern gay history. He can be reached on the site's discussion boards, or by e-mail at wik@gayhistory.com. For more Past Out, visit www.planetout.com. |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 10, No. 13, Sept. 22, 2000. |