Not only truth, but supreme beauty

We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to apologize for the prosecution of Alan Turing that led to his untimely death.

MATHEMATICIAN, LOGICIAN, WARTIME CODEBREAKER, VICTIM OF PREJUDICE - "Mathematics, rightly viewed, possesses not only truth but supreme beauty, a beauty cold and austere like that of sculpture."

Alan Turing was the greatest computer scientist ever born in Britain. He laid the foundations of computing, helped break the Nazi Enigma code and told us how to tell whether a machine could think.

He was also gay. He was prosecuted for being gay, chemically castrated as a ‘cure’, and took his own life, aged 41.

The British Government should apologize to Alan Turing for his treatment and recognize that his work created much of the world we live in and saved us from Nazi Germany. And an apology would recognize the tragic consequences of prejudice that ended this man’s life and career.

Like this:

Be the first to like this post.

August 20, 2009
Categories: petition . Tags: alan turing, computer science, homophobia, lgbt, liberation, manchester, mathematics, oppression, science . Author: D

3 Comments

Comment by D on August 20, 2009 1:59 am

Before I discovered revolutionary socialism, this guy was my Lenin. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gV67Sj2jkVg

Reply
Comment by Mullah on August 29, 2009 12:54 pm

I believe that this quote “Mathematics, rightly viewed, possesses not only truth but supreme beauty, a beauty cold and austere like that of sculpture” is from Bertrand Russell and not Alan Turing.

Reply
- Comment by D on August 29, 2009 8:48 pm
  
  Indeed. But it is used for the dedication on Turing’s statue in Manchester.
  
  Reply

Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Enter your comment here...

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

Email (required) (Address never made public)

Name (required)

Website

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. ( Log Out / Change )

You are commenting using your Twitter account. ( Log Out / Change )

You are commenting using your Facebook account. ( Log Out / Change )

Cancel

Connecting to %s

Socialist Worker

'We will defy the bankers' - Greek workers speak out May 15, 2012

“No one wants to be governed like before,” says Costas Katarachias, a doctor and union rep at Agios Savvas cancer hospital in Athens

Anti-war protesters rally outside US embassy May 19, 2012

Several hundred protesters rallied outside the US embassy in London today, Saturday, as Nato leaders met in Chicago to discuss the ongoing “war on terror”

Global protests planned as Nato meets in Chicago May 16, 2012

Nato leaders are preparing to gather in Chicago on Sunday for a two day conference on the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan

Russia's first Occupy protest builds opposition to Putin May 16, 2012

Hundreds of anti-government protesters have been camping out in central Moscow for over a week, in Russias first occupy protest

Caravan for climate jobs sets off May 13, 2012

Climate campaigners gathered in London and Edinburgh yesterday (Saturday) to wave off the Caravan for a Million Climate Jobs on its tour of Britain

Rochdale sex abuse is nothing to do with race May 15, 2012

High-profile grooming case exposes the bleak reality of some young womens lives, says Judith Orr

Egypt: Faith in the revolt May 15, 2012

The lefts attitude to Egypts Islamists has long been a point of debate – Revolutionary Socialist Hossam el-Hamalawy says a sit‑in at Egypts Ministry of Defence shows its vital to take sides

After 10 May: where next for the pensions dispute? May 15, 2012

May Day came late for hundreds of thousands of public sector workers, writes Martin Smith, SWP industrial organiser

Tories' panic mounts as Cameron's chum Rebekah Brooks charged May 15, 2012

David Cameron has put off his appearance before the Leveson inquiry amid mounting panic in Downing Street, writes Simon Basketter

Nurses jeer at Andrew Lansley's lies May 15, 2012

The Tories are hellbent on destroying the national health servicebut far-fetched soundbites wont quell workers anger at snowballing job cuts, writes Julie Sherry

Socialist Review

The myths that tumble with tyrants

The uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia have set the entire region ablaze with revolt. Mark L Thomas opens our coverage by considering the historic significance of these events.

The gravedigger of dictatorship

There have been many conflicting interpretations of events in Egypt. Anne Alexander argues that the working class is the key force in Egyptian society with the power to drive the revolution forward.

Tunisia: the revolution has only just begun

With dictator Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali long gone, media attention on Tunisia has waned. But there is now an ongoing battle to cleanse the country of Ben Ali's cronies, reports Mohamed Tonsi.

Tories sow false divisions

Last month David Cameron used a speech in Munich to attack multiculturalism, gaining fulsome praise from far-right and fascist organisations across Europe. Hassan Mahamdallie exposes Cameron's racist lies, while considering the legacy of multiculturalism in Britain.

Socialism and women's liberation

It is 100 years since the first International Women's Day was held in March 1911, yet despite many victories gender inequality still exists today. Sally Campbell argues that only socialism can bring genuine liberation

	D on R. I. P Chris Harman
	D on Volver, an’ that
	D on Volver, an’ that
	D on Not only truth, but supreme…
	Mullah on Not only truth, but supreme…

Search

IST bloggers

Other bloggers

Resources

Posts by date

Posts by category

Meta