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The 1st Laser
The 1st laser was created by Thoedore Maiman at the Hughes Research Laboratory in California. The laser was created by shining a high power flash lamp on a ruby rod with silver-coated surfaces. The Ruby Laser was able to shoot a beam to the moon and reflect off of reflectors placed on the moon by astronauts. With this technology, we were able to find out the distance between the Earth and the Moon. -
Unimate
Unimate is the first industreal robot. It was created by General Motors to heat die casts and welding on auto bodies. These jobs were hard and painful for most people. It was created by George Devol and Joseph Engelberger. -
"Spacewar"
"Spacewar" is one of the earliest video games. It was created by Steve Russell, Martin Graetz, and Wayne Wiitanen. It was created on the PDP-1 for use at universities where many students interested in computers were. The game is two players. The goal of the game is to shoot down your opponent first. Spacewar is over 50 years old, and is hailed for being the first video game ever, which inspired many more video games to come. -
Sketchpad: The First Computer Graphics Program
“Sketchpad” was created by Ivan Sutherland. The software utilized a light pen, where you were able to draw directly on the screen. He created the software so that people who weren't interested in computers could then use them for artistic purposes, but still being able to be used by anybody. The picture shown is a demo created by Ivan for the use of operators. -
The Cassette Tape
The company Phillips created a compact stereo tape and player. With this you were able to listen to audio/music whenever you want. The Cassette Tape was the most popular form of music media until the CD's took over. -
The First Computer Mouse
Douglas Englebart created the computer mouse for the ability to move a cursor on the X and Y axis. The mouse was made from a piece of wood and two gears to move the X and Y axis. Douglas patented the mouse as the "X-Y Position Indicator for a Display System." The computer mouse revolutionized computers, and made computers easier to use for everyone. -
BASIC: The First Programming Language
Mathematicians John G. Kemeny and Thomas E. Kurtz wanted to teach their students about computers in an easy-to-learn way. The two men started their project in 1956. They then created DOPE, but it was too easy to use and had no real use. After many years the men had completed "BASIC". In 1975 Paul Allen and Bill Gates got the right to use BASIC in their new "Personal Computers". -
The World's First Supercomputer: CDC 6600
CDC (Control Data Corporation) 6600 was built by Seymour Cray and his team. This was the first computer to be deemed as a "Supercomputer". CDC 6600's clock speed was 100 nanoseconds. CDC 6600 was also had the ability to have two line printers, a card punch, a photographic plotter, and standard magnetic tape. The CDC 6600 is estimated to be worth 7 million dollars. -
First Video Game Home Console Prototype
Ralph Baer saw the appeal of television in homes, so he thought of machine that let you play games on the television. In 1967 he pitched the idea to his colleagues Bill Harrison and Bill Rusch who worked with him at Sanders Associates Inc. as engineers, and they soon started to create prototypes of this new machine. In 1969 the prototype was finished. The men then sold the prototype to Magnavox, which then made the first video game console, the "Magnavox Odyssey", in 1972. -
The Internet is Created
The UCLA wanted to develop a network that had the ability to send messages between computers. The first message was sent by Professor Leonard KleainRock. Charley S. Kline attempted to log on to the UCLA laboratory. He sent the message "LO" to the laboratory. He attempted to write "LOGIN", but the server crashed before he could finish.
