Alan Turing

Alan Turing (1912–1954) was an English computer scientist and mathematician. As a gay man, in 1952 Turing was prosecuted for "gross indecency" (at the time, still a criminal act in the UK). He chose chemical castration treatment as an alternative to prison. In 2009, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown made an official public apology on behalf of the British government for "the appalling way he was treated." Queen Elizabeth II granted Turing a posthumous pardon in 2013.