Tech: Carrying the fame of a genius is not an easy task. Today’s geniuses may have been the insecure students, the recent graduates eager for a chance, and the professionals who had to start from scratch. Every career comes with challenges, and that of tech geniuses is no different, as overcoming them requires a good deal of courage, determination and even cold blood.
The recipe is not simple, it is not like a cake that, when heated correctly, will grow and reach the expected result. Quasar Ice, new fragrance by Boticário, was created thinking exactly about this: it takes coldness to act by instinct, be agile and let the energy flow. And that’s the message that permeated the lives of the five icons of technology that we’ll show you here.
Throughout history, we have followed several tech geniuses and geniuses who took a risk, acting coolly when faced with challenges. These are people who, today, serve as an example of dedication and inspiration so that we can all go further. Let’s meet some of the tech geniuses?
1. Santos Dumont: the coldness to fly
Santos Dumont, from Minas Gerais, was born in 1873 with a dream: to create a device that would make man fly by controlling his movements. The possibility of directing on the air attracted him since he was little, so he devoted himself intensely to studies, reading and learning. Dumont knew he needed courage and coolness to do the unthinkable for society at the time.
Living in Paris (France), he studied mechanics and combustion engines, knowledge he used to develop balloons and start testing them with a team of professionals. Initially, these balloons were powered by the wind; then, already motorized, they were controlled from the ground by Dumont himself, who continued to develop new types and test the limits of air navigation.
In 1901, with an airship, the miner turned around the Eiffel Tower due to the challenge launched by a millionaire. After that, he transported people in some airships, including taking the first woman to heaven in one of them.
The 14 Bis was the first aircraft developed by Dumont. Initially attached to a balloon, it went through several modifications until it covered 60 meters in 7 seconds at a height of approximately 2 meters. The landing was not so successful, as the 14 Bis was not yet fully controllable, but it was the beginning of the aeronautical technology we know today. Similarly, Dumont’s legacy of paradigm-breaking continues to be remembered.
2. Ada Lovelace: the coolness of being a woman in a masculine field
Countess Lovelace, known as Ada Lovelace, is an English mathematician who was born in 1815, daughter of fellow mathematician Anne Isabella Milbanke, who raised her alone after separating from Lord Byron. Since she was little, Ada understood that, to stand out in a sexist world, she would need to be brave and take risks, going beyond what was expected of her.
It was her mother who inspired her to study numbers and logic, hoping that she would be different from her father, a romantic artist. Even though Ada had grown up a “poetic” scientist, she was always willing to fight for what she wanted.
So, in 1842, she translated an article by the Italian inventor Charles Babbage on the differential machine, created by him to perform and print mathematical calculations. However, more than just changing the language of the text to English, Ada added several footnotes involving an algorithm.
This was the world’s first calculation algorithm that could be processed by a machine, making Ada the first programmer in history – not only the first woman, but the first person to do so. Impressing Babbage, the genius of technology was invited to work with him on the analytic machine, the first programmed to perform many functions beyond calculations.
Even though she died early, at age 36, due to uterine cancer, Ada Lovelace continues to inspire women to work with technology, a field that is still identified as masculine today.
3. Alan Turing: the coolness to end a war and be true to yourself
Another technological genius is the Englishman Alan Turing, who was born in 1912, two years before the outbreak of the First World War. With above-average intelligence, from an early age he devoted himself to the study of physics and mathematics, the subject of his graduation.
Professionally, already in the period of World War II, Turing worked at the British Government Codes and Ciphers School, where he dedicated himself to deciphering German codes, especially those of the Enigma machine. With his intelligence, he managed to determine
the exact place where the Nazi troops would be on June 6, 1944. Thus, it ensured the presence of Allied soldiers in Normandy, an occasion that became known as D-Day, and helped in the quicker conclusion of the war.
The device created for this feat was known as the Turing Machine. Its peculiarity was to change functions as needed, being entirely based on binary calculations, defining and solving mathematical problems through sequential steps. The logic of algorithms and of all modern computing comes from there; Turing was even the one who brought Ada Lovelace notoriety by referencing her work.
The English mathematician also had the wit to create a machine that tested the quality of artificial intelligences, identifying the level of their credibility, known as the Imitation Game.
His challenges, in addition to all those already mentioned, involved his sexuality: he was arrested for indecency, declared himself a homosexual and had to undergo treatment with female hormones in order to “cure” this “condition”. Turin was not only ahead of his time for his mathematical knowledge, but also for being true to who he was, inspiring many young people to follow in his footsteps.
4. Satya Nadella: the coolness to revolutionize a great company
Engineer Satya Nadella was born in India in 1967 and has always liked to build things. After a distinguished student career with two MBAs, he spent time working at Sun Microsystems until joining Microsoft in 1992.
At the large software company, Nadella held several vice presidents. In 2011, he was named president of the server and tools division, where he remained until 2014, when he was promoted to Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the company, becoming the third CEO of Microsoft since the company was created in 1975 (the first was Bill Gates).
The challenge of taking the top job at one of the world’s biggest companies didn’t hold back Nadella, who had the coolness and the flexibility to take Microsoft to new heights. As CEO, he led projects, built relationships with large groups and coordinated the acquisition of several companies, increasing the value of Microsoft’s shares. In his hands, the company became the third largest in the world in market value, reaching $1.9 trillion (the second is Tim Cook’s Apple).
Another result of his dedication was the recent appointment to the position of chairman of the company’s board, on the 17th, which he will hold simultaneously with that of CEO. The last person to hold both positions was Bill Gates himself, 21 years ago.
Nadella took on the challenge of joining a growing company, watching it stagnate and risk a new rise, even going against the performances of previous CEOs. For this, the engineer analyzes the situations coolly and very carefully; so, after he makes a decision, he doesn’t back down.
5. Tim Cook: the coolness to replace one of the biggest names in technology
The American Tim Cook is known for being the current CEO of Apple. Born in 1960, Cook was always very determined and knew what he wanted from an early age. So he graduated in Industrial Production Engineering and, after his MBA, worked for 12 years at the International Business Machines Corporation (IBM), which at the time was one of the largest computer companies in the world.
From there, he moved to Intelligent Electronics, where he assumed the role of Chief Operating Officer (COO); then he spent 6 months as Vice President of Corporate Materials at Compaq in 1997.
In 1998, Cook accepted the position of Apple’s senior vice president of worldwide operations at the request of Steve Jobs. His role in the company was quite relevant, since, in the early years, he reduced the company’s inventory, closing factories and warehouses – and reducing costs –, and invested in flash memories, a technology that was still not widespread, as of 2005.
When Jobs stepped down as Apple’s CEO in 2009, Cook took over, but not completely, as Jobs was still responsible for many of the company’s key decisions. Prior to that, Cook had been replacing the CEO when he was away and serving as COO.
With the passing of Jobs, Cook effectively assumed the role of CEO of Apple, proving increasingly to be the right choice within the company. In 2012, he made several changes to Apple’s executive board, gaining notoriety for the feat. In addition, he fights for an inclusive and non-discriminatory environment and has doubled the company’s revenue and profits, good results that disassociate Jobs’ success, marking Cook as one of the names that brought the company back.
These are five examples of tech geniuses whose legacy has been and is being built upon. built over the years. For them, it took a lot of courage, agility and coldness to break society’s expectations and mark history. The new Quasar Ice, by Boticário, was created to reinforce personalities like this and inspire you to be next to them.