Daughter of 'Gordy' Lord Byron. Had a real flair for numbers. Helped Chuck Babbage with some of the math theory stuff for his mechanical computer notions, a gizmo called 'the difference engine' and another one called 'the analytical engine'. Smart girl. Father bit of a prima donna. Some more recent assessments of her work have led to her being entitled as the 'world's first computer programmer' for helping Chuck figure out how all those turning wheels in his blue prints would affect other turning wheels deeper in the machine. This guy Chuck Babbage and his machines; look I know obsession and this was an obsession. I used to travel a lot more than I do now, spent some meaningful time in Britain over the years; mostly in the mid to late 19th century. Just ask Igor, he was there for some of it.
I came about meeting Ava by way of association with her father, Lord Byron (I called him 'Gordy') who was one of Mary Shelley's housemates across the lake from me in the summer of 1816. The other housemate was Mary's husband Percy.
It was through Ava that I met Mike Faraday. Mike and I hit it off like two thieves, although any actual larceny taking place occurred in the office of his responsibility. I had demonstrated working biomechanical electrically induced life forms when he was just some punk kid dodging magnets around on the desk. Does anyone notice he never went to school? Yet somehow managed to pull all that knowledge out of thin air? And he is credited with the groundwork for electric motors?
But I don't begrudge him, really. It's not like I could open up the head of one of my creatures and show just anyone the tiny gyro-dynamos I had doing actual work while Mike was futzing around with magnets. Same thing with Jimmy Maxwell. It could very easily have been either of those guys with the whole re-animating dead corpses routine, and me with my picture on Einstein's desk next to Isaac Newton's picture. Ava joked "that it was only because they were both English". Meaning I was not, therefore naturally predisposed to getting my hands really really dirty. Huh, funny joke.
Obviously I spent some time in England, pursuing various interests. I had a reason for meeting Ava, for it was I who brought the final words of her father to her, being an attending physician at his death. Several long stories, bound to get told eventually.
I will note something about Jimmy, Mike, Ava, Chuck, and even Al: They will live on in their work for their contributions to sciences and mankind. Yet I am the one who is still actually alive. Now who's top dog, you thieving bunch of skeletons? Ha ha ha ha ha.
Ava sits lightly in my memory, I still feel the pressure of what forms of illumination she brought to me.
Isaac Newton died about 50-60 odd years before I was born. He could not have stolen any ideas from me, nor was I likely to steal ideas from him. Too much religion in his menus. Seemed like a kind of kook in some ways.
