General > General Technical Chat
"if it wasn't for the invention of X we wouldn't have Y"
Ed.Kloonk:
Just watched Curious Droids' latest vid on the history of Bell Labs. No shade on Paul, but I have often wondered just how true the statement "if it wasn't for the invention of X we wouldn't have Y" really is.
In this case the invention of the Mosfet, we wouldn't have computers we have today.
I have my suspicions. :)
Would you knowledgable folks like to either confirm or debunk any widely accepted invention that spawned other inventions. Did it really?
Would the second batter up, so to speak, eventually accommodate the gap in technology?
Zero999:
I think it's often more accurate to say, if X didn't invent Y, then Z would have.
ataradov:
There is a flow to things that needs to happen in a certain way, but I do agree that there is no way progress would stop if one thing in a chain did not happen exactly the way it did. But the timing may be extended without certain discoveries or contributions. And for that some people deserve credit.
There is a very good series by James Burke called Connections. It explores chains of inventions from ancient times to modern stuff. The first season is pretty good. The chains in the following two seasons are a bit of a stretch, IMO.
magic:
Well, computers today are packed with MOSFETs so if those had never been invented, even till now, we would surely be using bipolar machines instead.
Perhaps water cooling would be more popular >:D
pcprogrammer:
Another thing to consider in this topic: "What inventions or discoveries where made while looking for something completely different?"
Can't produce a good sample out of the top of my head, but I am sure there will be, especially in the medical field.
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