Skirts and Ladders 'Computing is too important to be left to men' — Karen Spärck Jones

“We can only see a short distance ahead, but we can see plenty there that needs to be done.” – Alan Turing

Another day, another list. Today it's the third Financial News 100 list of the most influencial women in finance. I was pleased to see the names of three women from my current firm, and another three from my former employer. That's good representation, even if the soundbites for all are a bit short. Financial News have stated their criteria for choosing these women up front, but the blurb about them could be taken from LinkedIn for all that they tell us about what each woman has achieved above and beyond the normal course of work. Why are they listed instead of their peers? Or is it perhaps the case that these are not the top 100, but the only 100?

Seeing I can't focus on any of those women as a shining example of why women should be in the workforce, it feels appropriate that the spotlight should be on a man for change.

I'm sure a lot of people didn't know who Alan Turing was a mere week ago, but having studied computer science at university, I was promptly introduced to his name. It must be said that 'The History of Computing' rarely touches on homosexuality, so that part of the story was left unsaid. But the brilliance of Turing, all that he accomplished and contributed was covered in more detail than most of us found necessary. I studied finite state automata, artificial intelligence and cryptanalysis and there he was in all of it.

The Number 10 petition was the first time that I became aware that he was more than the name behind those dreaded Turing machines, universal or otherwise. I never believed that anything would come of it, having seen many petitions come and go, so it was a great surprise when 10pm last Thursday night rolled around. The Twitter traffic alone kept me up for far too long that night, and it was even more pleasing to see Dr Sue Black being corralled by the media for many interviews on Turing, and by proxy, his work at Bletchley.

I focus on women in this blog, because that's what I know and care about, but it's fundamentally necessary to acknowledge and include all people, no matter what the difference in question is for us to move forward. Yes, the actions taken against him were in line with the law at the time. But that doesn't make it right or any better to ignore. Some critics want a broader apology, to each and every individual who suffered in prison or with the effects of chemical castration, but I think the statement was just right as it was.

It is thanks to men and women who were totally committed to fighting fascism, people like Alan Turing, that the horrors of the Holocaust and of total war are part of Europe's history and not Europe's present. So on behalf of the British government, and all those who live freely thanks to Alan's work, I am very proud to say: we're sorry. You deserved so much better.