Augusta Ada King, Countess of Lovelace (December 10, 1815 - November 27, 1852), born Augusta Ada Byron and now commonly known as Ada Lovelace, was an English mathematician and writer. She was the only legitimate child of the poet Lord Byron and his wife Anne Isabella Byron. She described her approach as "poetical science" and herself as an "Analyst & Metaphysician." As a young adult, her mathematical talents led her to an ongoing working relationship and friendship with fellow British mathematician Charles Babbage, and in particular Babbage's work on the Analytical Engine. Her notes on the engine include what is recognized as the first algorithm intended to be carried out by a machine. Because of this, she is often described as the world's first computer programmer.