Cerebral Shangrila

Sunday, September 03, 2006

Rainbow Quiz - Identify the personality - Week 5

Here is the next Weekly Sunday "Rainbow" Quiz , where I would be giving 7 clues (Hence the name Rainbow) about a personality. Try to discover the person in the least number of clues . You can either leave the answer as a comment / email me . Feedback/ suggestions welcome. Googling is not preferred but then its just for fun and so go ahead if you need to.

clue # 1 : "X" was conceived in 1911 in Chatrapur, India. He was later born in London.

clue # 2 : A child prodigy, he displayed an early affinity for numbers & puzzles and at an young age of sixteen, X encountered Albert Einstein's work; not only did he grasp it, but he extrapolated Einstein's questioning of Newton's laws of motion .

clue # 3 : One of the most famous cryptographers, his work in breaking the Nazi secret codes was a great help to the allies in WW2 (World War 2) and he was awarded the OBE by the British Govt for his work.

clue # 4 : At Cambridge University, he developed the proof which states that automatic computation cannot solve all mathematical problems. This concept, also known as the "X" Machine, is considered the basis for the modern theory of computation.

clue # 5 : A few years after the end of WW2, he was arrested for 'indecency' ( being an homosexual) and was subjected to harmonal injections to make him normal.In the early 50's, he was found dead in his house, an apparent suicide.

Clue # 6 : He died of cyanide poisoning, apparently from a cyanide-laced apple he left half-eaten.The rainbow Apple logo (of Apple Computer Inc) with a bite taken out of it ,is supposed to be an homage to "X".

clue # 7 : "X" is often considered to be the father of modern computer science.

P.S : A genius beyond compare whom the world lost for trivial reasons.

5 Comments:

  • hey..alan turing? im guessing by the "turing machine' clue.

    By Blogger Abhishek Chatterjee, at 5:09 PM  

  • I think it's Turing since the tests by that name is more famous.May be without that clue this one would be bit difficult

    If it's Turing then the most important contribution of his was the Manchester Mark 1 theory which replaced the magentic drums as a source memory instead of paper tapes and he must be virtually the poioneer of what is practiced today as'stored procedures'

    By Blogger RK, at 2:13 AM  

  • Alan Turing.

    By Blogger Quizman, at 7:12 AM  

  • Alan Turing!!found out 4m the 6th clue..

    By Blogger Hell's Angel, at 1:40 PM  

  • Everyone - Yeah. The answer is "Alan Turing" ! Amazing genius..

    By Blogger Cogito, at 9:46 PM  

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