Responsibility Blog

What’s the Bright Idea?

By Susan Butta | October 9, 2009

I have to take a moment to pause and reflect on this year’s Nobel Prize in Physics awardees. Three scientists received the award: Dr. Charles K. Kao, Dr. Willard S. Boyle and Dr. George E. Smith.

All three physicists are being recognized for the work they performed in labs forty or more years ago. And the outcomes of their efforts touch every one of our lives in some way.

The results of Dr. Kao’s work were in the field of fiber optics. His ideas and research lead the way to making very pure glass into fiber optic strands that could stretch more than half a mile, leading the way to the ultra fast communications networks we use today. In fact, if you’re reading this blog over a high-speed connection, say “Thank you” to Dr. Kao.

Drs. Boyle and Smith invented the tiny semiconductor sensors that make displaying digital photography possible. They get a special shout-out. They did their groundbreaking work at Bell Laboratories in New Jersey, which means we share a common heritage. In fact, if you have a 10 mega-pixel camera, you hold 10 million of their semiconductor sensors in your hand every time you snap a photo.

So, thanks again Drs. Kao, Smith and Boyle. If it weren’t for great minds like yours we might not have the advanced networks we have today. And that would be unfortunate because we are just now beginning to see how these networks and digital media can transform education and empower those with disabilities. We are seeing how the power of broadband can be a powerful engine of growth and innovation for our industry and for the economy as a whole.

Every day, broadband becomes embedded more deeply in our lives, to the point where sometimes we don’t even think about it. Let’s take a moment now to think about some of the people who made it possible.