Ada Lovelace Shadowgram

Heroes of Computational Physics

Augusta Ada King was a mathematician and worked with Charles Babbage on what would have been the first general-purpose computer. Her notes included what is recognized as the first algorithm intended for a computing device, and she is known as the first computer programmer and debugger. As a computational artist, I have come to appreciate her prescient ability to see the potential for general-purpose computing to create output far beyond simple arithmetic.

This model is a shadowgram of the famous portrait of Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace. From the back, it looks completely flat, but the front is raised such that light traveling through the piece generates an image of Ada. There is a convenient hole at the top of the plate from which to hang this piece, placed so that it will be perfectly level.