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JwRosenthal
·The 1957 Ford Thunderbird was the first mass-produced car with an optional supercharged V-8 engine.
What was going on in 1957
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JwRosenthal
·Again- 1957 seeming to be a huge year for the debut of so many technologies all at once.
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Texas Toast
·Perhaps thinking too narrowly but I'm of the opinion that any mechanical watch, camera, or automotive innovation in the late 50s has more to do with the consumer economy than a technology breakthrough but interesting topic.
Many of the electronics advances in the later 50s result from a waterfall effect of WWII radar/radio technologies, enhanced by the invention of the transistor. With the help of a booming post-war economy and technology spending on the space-race/cold-war, electronics were becoming more widely available to the consumer.
Not sure a strict focus on 1957 serves best as all technologies have some incubation period and adoption curve. Both earlier and later timeframes have their own technical milestones/breakouts. For example, as a follow-on from the transistor boom of the 50s, the late 60s heralded the rise of the integrated circuit (IC), itself introduced only ca. 1960. Through 1963, NASA alone purchased some 60% of all ICs made in the US, helping drive volume and lower costs by orders of magnitude - an important bootstrap to the modern IC industry. Of course many other milestone products followed from the microelectronics revolution of the 50s and early 60s. Surely someone else here remembers Pong! 👍
Many of the electronics advances in the later 50s result from a waterfall effect of WWII radar/radio technologies, enhanced by the invention of the transistor. With the help of a booming post-war economy and technology spending on the space-race/cold-war, electronics were becoming more widely available to the consumer.
Not sure a strict focus on 1957 serves best as all technologies have some incubation period and adoption curve. Both earlier and later timeframes have their own technical milestones/breakouts. For example, as a follow-on from the transistor boom of the 50s, the late 60s heralded the rise of the integrated circuit (IC), itself introduced only ca. 1960. Through 1963, NASA alone purchased some 60% of all ICs made in the US, helping drive volume and lower costs by orders of magnitude - an important bootstrap to the modern IC industry. Of course many other milestone products followed from the microelectronics revolution of the 50s and early 60s. Surely someone else here remembers Pong! 👍
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Dan S
·Apparently lasers can also be traced to 1957:
https://history.aip.org/exhibits/laser/sections/whoinvented.html
Certainly the concept of a laser was established by that time (and crystal masers existed) although it wasn't actually demonstrated in practice for another 2-3 years. Major advances were made in semiconductor manufacturing (e.g. field-effect transistors) in that same time period.
More generally, in the post WWII nuclear era, there was tremendous public enthusiasm for science and technology, and US industry invested heavily in basic research and R&D. The major advances in the late 1950s and early 1960s represented the fruits of that investment IMO. These advances were transformational, and dwarfed the impacts of the space race by most accounts.
It's interesting to note that the major focus on science and technology came (to some extent) at the expense of environmental preservation, ultimately resulting in a backlash. Very useful to look back at this history.
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Canuck
·HAM, the “astrochimp” who was the first hominid in space, was born in French Cameroon in 1957. There is an excellent Wikipedia article on his space flight. He wasn’t named until after his successful venture, in case he didn’t survive. He wore a space suit which protected him when there was a problem with a leak in the capsule. His only trauma. A bruised nose.
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Gav1967
··Tend not to fret too muchWasn't 1957 when Hamilton introduced the first electric watch?
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kkt
·
Yes! And a whole lot of consequences followed from that. The west was shocked the Russians could get that done first (and even the Russians a little surprised, I think), and the west rushed to catch up. International Geophysical Year was launched for the following year, and a lot more funding for science, and science and math education in schools even down to elementary. New Math. Another phase in the arms race, because if you can put a satellite in orbit you can also put an ICBM anywhere, and you're going to look pretty silly threatening your opponent with bombers that take hours to reach their targets and are possible to shoot down if your opponent has ICBMs.
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MRC
·Wasn't 1957 when Hamilton introduced the first electric watch?
https://wornandwound.com/hamilton-e...reate-the-worlds-first-battery-powered-watch/
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Gav1967
··Tend not to fret too muchArticle on (in?) Worn and Wound says so
https://wornandwound.com/hamilton-e...reate-the-worlds-first-battery-powered-watch/
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OMEGuy
·July 7: John Lennon and Paul McCartney meet for the first time at a church festival in Liverpool. As Beatles, they become the most famous rock band in music history with George Harrison and Ringo Starr.
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JwRosenthal
·Thanks. Considering this is a watch forum thought it would be a nice addition to the thread
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MRC
·No-one has mentioned the introduction of the Speedmaster yet! (Uh-oh, seconds after posting I see @JwRosenthal did 🙁 )
I'll add the introduction of the Lotus Seven, another updated but still instantly recognisable item in production even now.
I'll add the introduction of the Lotus Seven, another updated but still instantly recognisable item in production even now.
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JwRosenthal
·The OP did.
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BlackTalon
··This Space for RentSimple reason. It was a dozen or so years after WWII ended. All the soldiers who returned home and knocked up their wives finally had some free time on their hands since their kids were now 10+ year old 😁
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Gav1967
··Tend not to fret too muchSimple reason. It was a dozen or so years after WWII ended. All the soldiers who returned home and knocked up their wives finally had some free time on their hands since their kids were now 10+ year old 😁
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Walrus
·The Cold War, as bad as it was, brought a lot of technology to the world. Communications from WW2 which were quite amazing, spilled over to the private sector. Much of our tech and medical advances come from warfare. Sometimes things happen in certain periods of time, Internet, actually the ideas for IP address was partly based on Nazi communications.
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BlackTalon
··This Space for RentLots more tech-related advances 10+ years after 1957...
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JwRosenthal
·Lots more tech-related advances 10+ years after 1957...
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Duracuir1
··Never Used A KodakSaw this at an antique store today...1957 best picture...
