Many tech companies stayed away from the use of male computerized voices because of HAL-9000 (from ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’).
The first “iPhone” was actually released in 1998…
The first “iPhone” was actually released in 1998 by a company called Infogear, a good nine years before Steve Jobs introduced Apple’s iPhone. Infogear was subsequently acquired by Cisco which then got into a trademark battle with Apple in 2007 over the name. The two companies eventually settled.
An astronomical clock was found in an ancient shipwreck…
An astronomical clock was found in an ancient shipwreck. The clock has no earlier examples and its sophistication would not be duplicated for over 1000 years.
The computer mouse, video conferencing, teleconferencing….
The computer mouse, video conferencing, teleconferencing, hypertext, word processing, hypermedia, object addressing and dynamic file linking, bootstrapping, and a collaborative real-time editor were all demonstrated for the first time in what is the called the “mother of all demos” back in 1968.
In 1932, a Seattle phone repair guy received an unusual complaint…
In 1932, a Seattle phone repair guy received an unusual complaint from a customer. A woman claimed that her phone never rang, however her dog howled on a backyard to let her know to pick up the phone on time. Turned out that, the dog didn’t have a psychic power. Instead, the dog was chained […]
During a visit to Boeing, Soviet scientists secretly applied adhesive…
During a visit to Boeing, Soviet scientists secretly applied adhesive to the bottom of their shoes in order to covertly collect metal samples from the floor.
George Hotz, then 17 years old, was the first to unlock a first…
George Hotz, then 17 years old, was the first to unlock a first generation iPhone and sold the iPhone for a Nissan 350z and 3 locked iPhones.
The first stealth technology test failed. They couldn’t understand…
The first stealth technology test failed. They couldn’t understand why until they noticed a bird sitting on the test object. They blew a loud horn, the bird flew off, and the test object disappeared from the radar screen showing stealth technology was a success.
Tech companies often test new products in New Zealand because…
Tech companies often test new products in New Zealand because they’re an ethnically diverse, tech-savvy, and English-speaking nation, yet still relatively isolated. If a product is a flop there, news is unlikely to spread quickly to the rest of the world and damage a company’s reputation.
In 2012, NYU-Poly constructed a robotic fish and placed it…
In 2012, NYU-Poly constructed a robotic fish and placed it in a tank of golden shiners. After simulating the tail movements of a leader fish, the robotic fish was eventually accepted and became their leader.