If you've read my previous posts on the This Week in Tech topic, you'll notice that I frequently take a historical approach and reminisce about tech news from years ago. This week won't be any different, except that I'm perhaps stretching the definition of a "week" by a few days as some events happened close to this week.
January 26th
- 1962 – During the height of the race to the moon several probes were sent in advance. On 26 Jan 1962, the Ranger 3 probe was launched to take and send back pictures. However, due to technical issues, Ranger 3 missed the Moon and was unsuccessful in its journey.
- 1983 – The once popular and groundbreaking spreadsheet program Lotus 1-2-3 goes on sale.
- 1998 – Compaq purchases Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) for $9.6 billion.
January 25th has a few historical events associated with it over the decades. Was the timing of events after the first one coincidental or planned?
- 1915 – The first transcontinental telephone call. Alexander Graham Bell in New York spoke with Thomas Watson in San Francisco
- 1959 – The first transcontinental jet flight from Los Angeles to New York.
- 2004 – The Opportunity rover lands on Mars.
January 24th has had a few exciting things happen as well.
- 1950 – Percy LeBaron Spencer receives a patent for the microwave oven.
- 1984 – The launch of the Macintosh computer by Apple Computer, Inc.
- 1986 – Voyager 2 makes the first fly-by of the planet Uranus and, in doing so, discovers an additional 10 moons of that planet.
As the human race continues to, arguably advance from a technological standpoint, we'll continue to be able to look back in future decades and recall moments that impacted industries and our personal lives. What technological breakthroughs have you seen this week that will be added to the list in years to come?
