While working at Bletchly Park at the height of World War II, Turing lead Hut 8, the section of the Britains codebreaking devision against the Nazis, Turing and his teams work gave the Allied powers the edge to defeat the Nazis and their allies in multiple crucial battles - shortening WW2 by many years, saving millions of lives and preventing the takeover of the world by facist forces.
Despite his loyalty and heroic acts for his country, Turing was prosecuted by the British government for being homosexual, and given an ultimatum - go to prison for years, and thus barred from research, or accept chemical castration in an attempt to "cure" him of his homosexuality. 2 agonizing years later, Turing commited suicide via cyanide posioning, leaving behind a lot of unfinished research.
Nearly 6 decades later, after much public outcry and campaigning, the British Government issues an official apology then pardon for Turing
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-25495315
, followed by the coining of the "Alan Turing law", a law to blanket-pardon all those convicting of homosexuality in the UK.
Turing was an example of a brilliant mind who helped build an entire scientific and mathematical field - and a warning about how our institutions can abuse and fail the queer community, despite all the progress made in the ensuing decades since Turings death.
[EOF]
@kde @gnome Excellent thread. Thanks.
For anyone interested, a couple of days ago the BBC uploaded an educational TV programme from 1966 which provides a really good explanation of Turing machines:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRBS70J2Poo
@kde @gnome Also worth noting are Matt Regan's excellent series of videos about actually building working Turing machines, state machines, and complete processor. e.g. this new one which demonstrates very clearly why our real world computers are not simple Turing machines:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbB8Gj_w634
Jun 27, 2026, 1:31 PMHe is now on the £50 note.
Jun 27, 2026, 2:37 PM
@kde @gnome I use this as an example for cis people who say they don't understand trans people's need to transition.
Turing was made to take estrogen. He was a cis man and estrogen changed him into someone he couldn't live as. "Chemical castration" hides this reality.
Being #trans and not allowed to transition (in whatever way you need, social, physical, ...) is rally dangerous for your health.