Tech History Today – Aug. 4

In 1921 – The first facsimile was transmitted by radio across the Atlantic Ocean using the Belinograph invented by Eduard Belin. A message written by C. V. Van Anda, managing editor of The New York Times and addressed to the Matin in Paris, was sent in seven minutes.

In 1988 – A computer halted an engine test in preparation for the launch of the space shuttle Discovery. The flight would be the first since the Challenger explosion in 1986.

In 2007 – NASA’s Phoenix spaceship launched on its mission to survey the Martian Arctic in search of water, geological discoveries, and evidence of conditions for biological life.

Tech News Today 556: Sirius Negotiating

Hosts: Tom Merritt, Sarah Lane, Iyaz Akhtar and Jason Howell

RIM shaping up, Sharp admits it’s helping build iPhones, why everybody’s quitting at Facebook, and more.

Guest: Danny Sullivan

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 our show notes at wiki.twit.tv.

Thanks to Cachefly for the bandwidth for this show.

Running time: 56:11

Tech History Today – Aug. 3

In 1811 – Elisha Otis was born. He invented a safety brake that prevented elevators from falling if the hoisting cable broke. Thank him every time you get in an elevator.

In 1958 – The nuclear submarine USS Nautilus became the first watercraft to reach the geographic North Pole. Commanding Officer, Commander William R. Anderson, announced to his crew, “For the world, our country, and the Navy – the North Pole.”

In 1977 – Tandy Corp of Texas holds a New York press conference to announce that it will manufacture the TRS-80.

Tech News Today 555: Don’t Fear the Cloud

Hosts: Tom Merritt, Sarah Lane, Iyaz Akhtar and Jason Howell

Amazon video comes to the iPad, Star Wars is now free, hot presentation slides, and more.

Guest: Eric Franklin

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 our show notes at wiki.twit.tv.

Thanks to Cachefly for the bandwidth for this show.

Running time: 46:46

Tech History Today – Aug. 2

In 1870 – The world’s first underground tube railway, (the Met had been the first underground non-tube railway) Tower Subway, opened in London, running from Lower Thames street to Vine Street. It closed after 4 months of operation.

1880: Parliament officially adopted Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) as the official time of Great Britain.

In 1902 – Mina Spiegel Rees was born in Ohio. and became one of the earliest female computer pioneers. She ran the Office of Naval Research, where she organized work on early computers like the Harvard Mark I.

Dragon*Con Approacheth!

In just a month I’ll be winging my way to Atlanta once again for Dragon*Con! This year my schedule has been spread out lightly like butter across the four days. If you’re going to be at the Con, here’s where you can find me if you’d like to say hey.

Friday August 31

Panel: Tech News
Tom Merritt discusses what it takes to keep up with the ever-changing tech news industry, and how they keep the hit podcast, ‘Tech News Today’ running.
Time: Fri 04:00 pm Location: Crystal Ballroom – Hilton (Length: 1 Hour)

FSL Tonight LIVE!
Justin Robert Young and myself will bring you the post-game wrap-up from the FSL championship. Vulcan vs. Lannisport? Coruscant vs. Rivendell? Whatever it ends up being, we’ll be there, with special guests.
Time: Fri 05:30 pm Location: 204 – Hilton (Length: 1 Hour)

Saturday September 1
Sword and Laser Podcast – LIVE
We’ll do a live version of our audio podcast with a special guest author and take your questions. So get to reading!
Time: Sat 02:30 pm Location: Crystal Ballroom – Hilton (Length: 1 Hour)

Parsec Awards
The Parsec Awards are the yearly awards for speculative fiction podcasts. I’ll be presenting, and Veronica Belmont will be hosting!
Time: Sun 04:30 pm Location: International North Room – Hyatt

Sunday September 2
Panel: Irrational and Mistaken
Brian Brushwood, myself and some other guests will discuss how public perceptions of science and scams and irrational and mistaken beliefs affect the ability to explain the world in news and entertainment.
Time: 5:30 PM 207 / 206 / 205 – Hilton (Length: 1 Hour)

Monday September 3
Geek & Sundry Panel!
Meet some of the minds behind Geek & Sundry including The Guild and Sword & Laser!
Time: Mon 10:00 am Location: Grand Ballroom A-F – Sheraton (Length: 1 Hour)

Tech History Today – Aug. 1

In 1873 – Andrew Smith Hallidie took his San Francisco cable car for its first test run. The tracks ran from Clay and Kearny Streets for 2800 feet to a hill 307 feet above.

In 1967 – The US Navy recalled Captain Grace Murray Hopper to active duty to help develop the programming language COBOL. /

In 1981 – MTV began broadcasting in the United States, playing The Buggles Video Kileld the Radio Star, and changing how we view music forever.

Tech News Today 554: The Pixel is Dead

Hosts: Tom Merritt, Sarah Lane, Iyaz Akhtar and Jason Howell

Microsoft’s new email service called Outlook, Twitter bans NBC critic, Hulu comes to Apple TV, and more.

Guest: Simon Dingle and Sharif Sakr

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 our show notes at wiki.twit.tv.

Thanks to Cachefly for the bandwidth for this show.

Running time: 50:03