Reflection on Technology

Abbey McRae: The Cassette Tape

Cassette Tapes were first created by Lou Ottens and was introduced to the public in 1963. It was a piece of technology that gave a new meaning to portable music. it gave people the capability to record and play music while also being able to widely distribute it. It was such an easy piece of technology to use that even children were able to use it. Something that made this piece of technology so popular was the Sony Walkman in 1979 which, once again, enhanced the portability of these tapes. 

Julia Foster: Carrier Pigeons

Carrier pigeons were bred and trained to take messages from point A to point B. They had an internal magnetic compass which gave them a homing instinct to find their way home. These pigeons were raised within a home and then were sent to a different location once they were trained. When person B wanted to send a message to person A, they would tie a note to the pigeon in a certain way then send it flying. Then the pigeon was capable of finding its way back home. Foot and horse transportation wasn't very reliable so this was the best solution to be able to get around this system. 

These pigeons were also used in WWI to send location, attacks, and updates. They were also used on boats and sea planes to communicate information that would otherwise take days to send. These pigeons were even so popular that people were specially trained to shoot them down so information couldn't get back to the enemy.