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Integrated circuits: Kilby’s 1958 experiment and the planar route
Kilby demonstrated a semiconductor circuit in 1958. Hoerni’s protected junctions and Noyce’s metal interconnections provided complementary manufacturing solutions in 1959. Their contributions must be separated from later industrial achievements.
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The Shipping Container — The Box That Globalised the Economy
On 26 April 1956, the converted tanker Ideal-X left Newark with 58 truck trailers on its deck. The loading cost dropped from $5.86/tonne to $0.16/tonne — a 97% reduction. This standardised metal box (TEU: 6.1 × 2.44 × 2.59 m) would make globalisation economically viable.
Alternating Current — Tesla and Westinghouse Electrify the World
In 1888, Nikola Tesla patented the polyphase induction motor and the alternating current distribution system. Partnered with George Westinghouse, he won the "War of Currents" against Edison — and laid the foundations of the electrical grid that powers 8 billion people today.
The Keeling Curve — Measuring Atmospheric CO₂ Since 1958
In March 1958, Charles David Keeling recorded 313 ppm of CO₂ at Mauna Loa. By 2025, the annual mean reaches 427 ppm (May 2025 peak: 430.2 ppm; May 2026 peak: 432.00 ppm) — a 36% increase over 67 years, amounting to 114 ppm of uninterrupted measured rise.