Ada Lovelace Facts

For one reason or another, the accomplishments of women throughout history are hard to come by. So you might not have known that the world's first computer programmer was a woman — or that her name was Ada Lovelace. As an influential proponent and contributor to Charles Babbage's trailblazing number-crunching machines, you owe more to this tech pioneer than you might think.

Internet, meet the "enchantress of numbers," otherwise known as Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace, who was born on this day nearly two centuries ago. In honor of her 197th birthday, Ada is the subject of today's Google Doodle, and our roundup of six things you didn't (but need to) know about the female computer whiz.