Alan Turing is said to be the founding father of modern artificial intelligence and cognitive science and provided the formalization of algorithms and computation with the help of the Turing machine. He was a British mathematician, cryptanalyst, logician, mathematical biologist, and philosopher who is widely known for cracking the German Enigma Code during World War II. He gave the Allied Powers the advantage that helped them defeat the Nazis in Europe.
Turing’s life and his quest to crack the Enigma Code has been documented in the movie ‘The Imitation Game‘, in which Benedict Cumberbatch plays the genius code breaker. Turing was an elected fellow of the Royal Society, and in 1952 he was convicted of “gross indecency,” i.e., homosexuality, which was illegal in the UK at that time. He was found dead in his bed of cyanide poisoning, which was declared a suicide after the inquisition. It was sixty years later that Queen Elizabeth II officially pardoned Turing.
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Why Was Alan Turing Convicted? What Was His Punishment?
In January 1952, a 39-year-old Turing started a relationship with 19-year-old Andrew Murray. Turing’s house was robbed on the 23rd of January and Murray told Turing that he and the burglar were acquainted. The burglary was reported to the police and it was during the investigation that Turing admitted to the sexual relationship between him and Murray. Both men were convicted of “gross indecency” under Section 11 of the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1885 as homosexuality was a crime in the UK at that time.
Turing’s attorney did not argue against or provide any evidence contrary to the allegations made during the initial proceedings. Turing entered a plea of guilty on the advice of his brother and solicitor. The case Regina v. Turing and Murray went to trial on 31st March 1952 and after being convicted Turing was given a choice between probation and imprisonment. The conditions of the probation entailed that Turing undergoes hormone therapy designed to reduce libido which is chemical castration.
Turing accepted the conditions of the probation and was injected with synthetic estrogen over the course of an entire year. This treatment ultimately rendered Turing impotent and caused the formation of breast tissue. Turing was able to keep his academic job but his security clearance to do cryptanalysis work for the Government Communications Headquarters and British signals intelligence was revoked.
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What Is The Story Behind Alan Turing’s Tragic Death?
Alan Turing’s death has always been shrouded by mystery, he was found dead on 7th June 1954 in his bed by his housekeeper. It was officially declared as a suicide, however, no motive was established at the 1954 inquest. Many contend that the reason behind his death was the hormone therapy he received as punishment after being convicted at trial for homosexuality. This is strange considering he died a year after his hormone therapy ended, an ordeal which Turing according to his friend Peter Hilton underwent with “amused fortitude”.
A half-eaten apple was discovered beside his bed, and it is assumed that Turing, who was fascinated by Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, used the apple to consume the fatal cyanide dose. The apple was never tested, and it appears that Turing had an apple before bedtime and did not always finish it. So, the half-eaten apple cannot be taken as proof that he had taken his own life.
Contrary to the verdict, records show that there was no evidence indicating suicide, and the coroner also claimed that Turing was indeed of sound body and mind when he died. He, in fact, appeared to be in a remarkable mental state at that time and also in the midst of ground-breaking work. He had even left a note on his desk the previous Friday, which contained a list of tasks that needed to be done after the holiday weekend.
An alternate explanation for his death is that he accidentally inhaled cyanide fumes from the apparatus used to electroplate gold onto spoons. Turing had an apparatus like this in his spare room, and potassium cyanide was used to dissolve gold. This theory of accidental inhalation was believed to be true by his mother as well. There are also a few who suggest he was murdered by secret services as he was a talented cryptanalyst at a time when homosexuals were thought to be threats to national security.
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