Alan Turing vs Alexander Fleming
Two child prodigies, compared on what is actually documented: field, era, country and record. No invented numbers.
The record, side by side
| Alan Turing | Alexander Fleming | |
| Field | Art | Music |
| Sub-field | Artist | Musician |
| Born | 1912 | 1881 |
| Died | 1954 | 1955 |
| Country of birth | ENG | SCT |
| Star sign | Cancer | Leo |
Who they are
Alan Turing
Father of Computer Science Enigma codebreaker · Turing machine · Convicted for being gay · Posthumously pardoned Born June 23, 1912 · London, UK · Died June 7, 1954
Full biography of Alan Turing →
Alexander Fleming
In September 1928, a Scottish bacteriologist returned from his summer holiday to a cluttered laboratory at St Mary's Hospital in London, and noticed something unusual on a petri dish he had left behind. A mould had contaminated one of his cultures of Staphylococcus bacteria — and around the mould, the bacteria were dead. Alexander Fleming did not immediately grasp that he had just made the most important medical discovery of the twentieth century. But he was curious enough to look more carefully, and careful enough not to throw the dish away. That decision would eventually…
Full biography of Alexander Fleming →
What they share
- Their lifetimes overlap.
Where they part
- Different fields: Art for Alan Turing, Music for Alexander Fleming.
- Born in different countries: ENG and SCT.
- 31 years separate their births (1912 and 1881).
Questions people ask
- Who came first, Alan Turing or Alexander Fleming?
- Alexander Fleming. Alan Turing was born in 1912, Alexander Fleming in 1881.
- What field is each of them in?
- Alan Turing is filed under Art (Artist). Alexander Fleming is filed under Music (Musician).
- Were they contemporaries?
- Yes - their lifetimes overlap.