When you think about technology, what is the first thing you think of? That may be a tough question! When I think about technology, so many things come to mind! Reflecting on the past century, technology has really changed the way we exist and interact with others. In this blog, I’ll be going over some of the many technological advancements in the past 100 years starting with the invention of the radio and ending with the creation of cryptocurrency.
Going back in time to the start of the 20th century, 1901, the radio was just barely transforming into what we know it as today. Radios were invented during the 1890s by many people around the world, but popularized particularly by Italian inventor, Guglielmo Marconi. But, the problem with the radio during this time was that it was only capable of sending and receiving Morse code.
By 1914, Canadian inventor, Fessenden, developed the technology that allowed “consistent broadcast waves powerful enough to transmit voices and music over thousands of miles,” and made the first voice and music recording. During World War 1, radios were sometimes used for communication, but it wasn’t until World War II that it really became useful. In the 1920’s, radio boomed when people began using it to transmit news and entertainment to people. Radios were put into cars and planes, they were used by churches, and they were used the most by the military to communicate.
During the 1940’s, the first ever computer was created, and it is nothing like how we know it today. In 1941, German engineer Konrad Zuse invented the Turing-complete computer which was able to perform general calculations and was even used to “solve wing flutter problems in German military aircraft.” However, this computer wasn’t able to hold any information! So, when IBM invented the IBM 350 Disk Storage Unit in 1956, it changed how businesses were able to use the computer.
The TRS-80 was invented in 1977 and was considered the first personal computer with a keyboard and screen attached to it. Not to be cliché, but the rest really is history! Computers only got more advanced as the years went by, allowing users to access “dot com” websites by 1985, use graphics and music on PCs by 1993, and play video games by 1994! All of these abilities are so seamless today because of how quickly the technology has been advancing, now people are finding ways to turn computers into a money-making machine
Coming more into the present time, cryptocurrency is one of the latest technological advancements of the century. Cryptocurrency has technically been around since 1983 when David Chaum invented eCash, a cryptographic system. Later he invented “DigiCash” in 1995, then the term “cryptocurrency” was created in 1998. “That year, Wei Dai began to think about developing a new payment method that used a cryptographic system,” and he pioneered the unsuccessful yet impactful “B-Money.”
When the stock market crashed in 2008, somebody under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto created the first official cryptocurrency “Bitcoin” to “create a new way of payment that could be used internationally, decentralized, and without having any financial institution behind it.” In order to purchase with bitcoin, it runs on a “triple entry” system which means that “every time there’s a new transaction, the sender, receiver, and a third-party must confirm and agree on the transaction.” Using this system maintains anonymity and trust, but makes it incredibly hard to trace.
Today, radios could be considered outdated to some, but they remain useful with “85 percent of the adult population listening to radio at least weekly” according to Deloitte in 2019. Computers have only gotten more useful as time has gone on and according to Statista, there were 4.66 billion active internet users worldwide as of January 2021. While it’s still new, cryptocurrency is currently booming. In March of 2021, the total value of bitcoin surpassed $1 trillion and less than a month later the cryptocurrency market surged over $2 trillion.
Written By: Kathryn Cottingham
November 12, 2021
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