1968 Inventions: Interesting Innovations That Marked The Year

1968 was arguably one of the most productive years in the entire decade.

Great strides were made towards innovation in the field of science and technology. Space exploration was also boosted, and several programs were launched to aid that endeavor.

The modern era technology, which we use currently, is no doubt remarkable and advanced. But it is not common knowledge that their initial conception and modern system design ideas were rooted in the history of technical development, which was developed back in 1968. During this period, the world was in a pretty unstable state.

Between the assassination of Robert Kennedy, 64th US Attorney General, Senator from New York, and brother of US President John F. Kennedy, and the invasion of Czechoslovakia by the Soviet Union, countries all across the world were dealing with issues of their own amidst the infamous Cold War.

Meanwhile, people with new ideas and potential schemes for technological innovations were being encouraged by governments to advance their research in order to produce new inventions and upgrade the things already invented.

Hence, the focus on technology and its advancement increased significantly, making it the year of technological and scientific progress along with social reformation.

In case you enjoyed reading this article so far, you might as well like reading 1960 inventions and 1927 inventions here on Kidadl.

Scientific Discoveries In 1968

While some prefer to call 1968 'the year of tragedies,' it had its fair share of transformations and scientific advancements. Several scientific discoveries which happened in 1968 were key contributors to global efforts aimed at making human lives convenient.

When we talk about scientific discoveries, it is essential to understand that it encompasses a number of domains, like medicine, space exploration, technology, and more.

In order to achieve the desired goal, scientific discoveries were to be used in the advancement of technology in every arena, be it medicine, military, or astronomy. In furtherance of this very endeavor, several scientists and researchers spent as much as their entire lives in search of the desired breakthrough throughout the entire decade.

Finally, in 1968, the discovery of the laser beam pulsars, and development of multiwire proportional chamber for particle detection brought smiles to some faces.

The discovery of the pulsar was a milestone in the history of scientific discoveries.

Published in the journal 'Nature' by Antony Hewish and Jocelyn Bell, along with their collaborators, it was instrumental in gaining information about the neutron star in deep space. In December of the same year, Apollo 8 successfully orbited the entire Earth and the hidden surface of the moon, discovering the other side of the moon.

Discoveries in the field of molecular biology were also extremely valued, given their elevated usage in the development of modern medicine.

It was considered as one step closer toward developing a possible cure for several diseases which were considered incurable at that point in time.

It is clear that these discoveries in the field of science were essential in bettering the lives of ordinary people and increasing the pace of development in society back then, in order for it to reach where it eventually did, as is evident from our current status as a highly developed society.

Technological Advancements In 1968

When it comes to technology, innovation and advancements have no limit in particular. Technology even has the potential to evolve past human control, as may be the case with Artificial Intelligence in the near future.

Back in 1968, however, technology was comparatively limited in its approach because the primary motivation was to win the race against other countries and become technologically advanced and independent with the use of the invented item in the field. But not every invention was for the military or the astronauts.

Advances in the invention of newer products for household and workplace uses were at their peak.

For instance, the famous prototype of the first mouse, which shaped modern computing, cordless drill, and other associated computing tools, was invented with the aim of assisting ordinary people with their day-to-day activities. Engineers and technical scientists spent a considerable amount of time coming up with things that made our lives easier.

In this very year, Intel was also born, the company which ended up revolutionizing the production of computers and processors for decades to come. Even today, the majority of laptops and PCs have Intel processors.

Even the patent for the jacuzzi whirlpool hot tub was granted in 1968. In totality, these events categorically established the importance of technological advancements in 1968.

Astronomical Achievements In 1968

Along with the advances in the field of science and technology, space exploration also progressed significantly in 1968.

The famous Apollo 8 aircraft was one of the major astronomical achievements of that year. It was the first manned spacecraft to leave the Earth's orbit and also the first spaceflight to reach another astronomical body, namely the moon.

The crew did not land on the moon, they orbited it and safely landed back on Earth.

The three astronauts who achieved this feat were named Frank Borman, James Lovell, and William Anders. This entire mission was put into action by NASA after the Soviet Union advanced in the space race by paralleling the US in sending manned missions into the lower Earth orbit.

Therefore, the US feared that the USSR would overtake the lunar exploration race and hence launched the entire program as a response.

The US felt that after the launch of Sputnik V and its unexpected success, its own image as the more advanced and superior country would be demolished. Hence, as a result, the US started its own efforts to match and attempt to surpass the USSR, triggering the Space Race.

The majority of astronomical achievements in 1968 were aimed at the larger context of space exploration and the subsequent competition between the US and USSR, which was partially due to the Cold War.

The resultant technology and manpower were essentially utilized for the purpose of enhancing the area of operation of the planned exploration mission, eventually hoping to defeat the USSR in the space race and change the power dynamic during the cold war.

This would unequivocally establish the notion of US supremacy, not only in terms of the space race but every other domain as well.

The launch of Apollo 7 in lower Earth orbit and the development of launch codes using backdated technology compared to that of today's time prompted the question of lunar exploration, which led to all the major advancements in the field of astronomy in 1968.

How big were the computers in 1968?

As the utilization of developing technology started to increase rapidly, there was a huge concern about the size of the computers and associated computing devices which were used for various purposes.

In 1968, computers were almost the size of refrigerators, humming and blinking at every instance of their usage.

They were used for performing complicated processes like analyzing the consumer behavior pattern for a market product and calculating missile trajectory for the military.

The concept of computing back then was limited to corporate affairs, government work, and universities. They were not available for 'personal,' day-to-day use just yet.

With the rising movement for making technical tools accessible and information-free and the subsequent invention of the mouse, the notion of making individualized, personal computers for daily work and home use was gaining momentum.

Hence, beginning in the US and soon reaching the rest of the world, the notion of 'personal computing' became a prominent concept and prompted research for making smaller, easily accessible computers that could fit on a desk-top and be operated with the help of smaller tools, like the mouse instead of long computer codes and punch cards.

Therefore, along with enabling the usage of miniature technology came the quest for making processors and discs which were smaller in size and could git within a box, occupying a smaller amount of space rather than needing an entire room.

So much so, it is interesting to know that the original size of the Apollo spacecraft computer was about the size of seven refrigerators, stacked side by side.

It took years to shrink the entire computer into a compact unit that could fit on the ship.

It was called the Apollo Guidance Computer (AGC), and its first flight was the Apollo 7mission.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for 1968 inventions, then why not take a look at 1966 inventions or 1876 telephones.