Tom Merritt's Blog, page 1159
December 29, 2012
Tech History Today – Dec. 30
In 1873 – A number of gentlemen in New York City the American Metrological Society, feeling that a change to the Metric System was needed by civilized nations. 100 years later their defunct and gallons, miles, and Fahrenheit rule the US.
In 1913 – Dr William David Coolidge patent for improvements in tungsten and methods for making the same for use as filaments in incandescent lights. It made light bulbs last a lot longer. Too bad that in 1928, GE got a court to declare the patent was not an invention.
In 1924 – Astronomer Edwin Hubble announced that he had found stars in the spiral nebula Andromeda, and using Leavitt’s formula measured them as 860,000 light years away proving Andromeda was a separate galaxy. He would go on to find a dozen more galaxies.
Like Tech History? Purchase Tom Merritt’s Chronology of Tech History at Merritt’s Books site.
December 28, 2012
Tech History Today – Dec. 29
In 1949 – TV station KC2XAK of Bridgeport, Connecticut became the first Ultra high frequency (UHF) television station to operate a daily schedule.
In 1952 – The first hearing aid using a junction transistor went on sale, the model 1010 manufactured by the Sonotone Corporation in Elmsford, NY, U.S.
In 1959 – Physicist Richard Feynman gave a talk called “There’s Plenty of Room at the Bottom”, in which he suggested it should be possible to make nanoscale machines that can arrange atoms the way we want. So happy birthday nanotechnology.
Like Tech History? Purchase Tom Merritt’s Chronology of Tech History at Merritt’s Books site.
Tech News Today 658: 2012 Prediction Results
Hosts: Tom Merritt, Sarah Lane, Iyaz Akhtar and Jason Howell
The sobering moment where we take a look back at our tech predictions for 2012 and see how we did.
Download or subscribe to this show at twit.tv/tnt.
Submit and vote on story coverage at technewstoday.reddit.com.
We invite you to read, add to, and amend the wiki entry for this episode at wiki.twit.tv.
Thanks to Cachefly for the bandwidth for this show.
Running time:: 0:25:18
Tech News Today 657: Big Stories of 2012
Hosts: Tom Merritt, Sarah Lane, Iyaz Akhtar and Jason Howell
The crew highlight some of the more important stories from 2012.
Download or subscribe to this show at twit.tv/tnt.
Submit and vote on story coverage at technewstoday.reddit.com.
We invite you to read, add to, and amend the wiki entry for this episode at wiki.twit.tv.
Thanks to Cachefly for the bandwidth for this show.
Running time:: 0:43:19
Autopilot S2E07 – Dr. Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a Time Lord—a time travelling, humanoid alien known as the Doctor. He explores the universe in his ‘TARDIS’, a sentient, telepathic time-and-space-travel machine that flies through the time vortex.
December 27, 2012
Tech History Today – Dec. 28
In 1886 – Josephine Garis Cochrane of Shelbyville, Illinois received the first U.S. patent for a commercially successful dishwasher. Dishes fit in compartments in a wheel that turned inside a copper boiler. Her company eventually became KitchenAid.
In 1895 – The first commercial presentation of the famous Lumière Cinématographe took place at the Salon Indien of the Grand Café in Paris. Invited payees got ten film.
In 2005 – The European Space Agency and the Galileo Joint launched GIOVE-A the first test-bed satellite for the Galileo geo-location system.
Like Tech History? Purchase Tom Merritt’s Chronology of Tech History at Merritt’s Books site.
December 26, 2012
Tech History Today – Dec. 27
In 1571 – In Well der Stadt, Wurttemberg of the then Holy Roman Empire, Johannes Kepler was born. His theories like the laws of planetary motion came in handy for Isaac Newton.
In 1968 – Apollo 8 splashed down in the Pacific Ocean, ending the first manned orbit of the Moon.
In 2007 – Warner Music Group became the third major music label to begin selling DRM-free MP3s through Amazon.
Like Tech History? Purchase Tom Merritt’s Chronology of Tech History at Merritt’s Books site.
S&L Podcast – #117 – Is Gandalf a jerk?
WHAT ARE WE DRINKING?
Tom: 2009 Château de Gueyze Buzet
Veronica: Boekenhoutskloof Franschook The Wolftrap
QUICK BURNS
Gene Wolfe Chosen as SFWA Grand Master
TOC: “The Year’s Best Science Fiction & Fantasy, 2013 Edition” edited by Rich Horton
The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy Books of 2012
CALENDAR
TV, MOVIES AND VIDEO GAMES
A LIES OF LOCKE LAMORA TV series?
BARE YOUR SWORD
The Hobbit: an Anti-fantasy Novel (SPOILERS)
Gandalf Is A Jerk!
BOOK CHECK-IN
The Hobbit – Wrap-up this Friday
Old man’s War after that
ADDENDUMS
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Tech History Today – Dec. 26
In 1791 – At 44 Crosby Row, Walworth Road, London, England, (we think), Betsy and Benjamin welcomed their son Charles Babbage into the world. He would grow up to make a difference…. engine.
In 1933 – Edwin Armstrong received a patent for his method of eliminating static in a radio broadcast using frequency modulation. He would license out the technology but many companies would embrace FM radio without his permission and he spent much of his later life battling in court.
In 1982 – Time’s January 3rd issue arrived on newsstands with the computer on the cover as Machine of the Year. It was the first non-human to gain the honor since the Man of the Year concept started in 1927 with Charles Lindbergh.
Like Tech History? Purchase Tom Merritt’s Chronology of Tech History at Merritt’s Books site.
Tech News Today 656: Best of 2012
Hosts: Tom Merritt, Sarah Lane, Iyaz Akhtar and Jason Howell
A collection of some of the best moments of Tech News Today from 2012.
Download or subscribe to this show at twit.tv/tnt.
Submit and vote on story coverage at technewstoday.reddit.com.
We invite you to read, add to, and amend the wiki entry for this episode at wiki.twit.tv.
Thanks to Cachefly for the bandwidth for this show.
Running time:: 0:40:17
