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Watch the 1st American Newsreel of Sputnik Launch
MMBK writes with this snippet from motherboard.tv: "Fifty three years ago this week, the Russians won the space race – or one of its laps – by successfully launching the Sputnik satellite into orbit. This newsreel, the first to report on the launch, recycles older animation about geosynchronic orbits, since all film footage was kept secret (note the very un-Soviet IBM logo on one of the massive computers)."
It really isn't. But even if it were, it's like saying because you're the first car on the track in practice, you should be awarded the trophy. It's not even as important as the fastest qualifying lap.
At most you can be in the lead, but win? Not even close!
I gotta admit begrudging admoration of the Russians for this one.
Actually, I have always thought that the Soviets getting a satellite into space first was a good thing, as an American of 45 years. It put the fear of ungod into the American military complex to get into space, which ended up netting more good science than simply building bigger and bigger bombs. It also created a huge demand for science, and boosted the desire of teenagers to enter the science field. Nothing like fear to motivate a country into investing into science.
Being raised during the cold war in a lifer military family might color my perspective, but a lot of good things came out of the cold war. One of them is the internet, which might have taken much longer to develop if not for the fear of Soviet ICBMs, reinforced by that humble little beeping satellite named Sputnik.
Tequila: It's not just for breakfast anymore!
The Soviet Union collapsed, and the USA doesn't give a sith about space anymore.
That sure looks like a cartoon of an IBM 650, a "low-cost" business computer of the late fifties. Why it's in this movie, I have no clue.
The determined Real Programmer can write Fortran programs in any language.
AMERICA NUMBER IS ONE EVERYWHERE!!!!
Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin? lol... only communist terrorists can spell such crazy names..
After watching the video I don't think the IBM computer shown is meant to be in a Soviet facility. They talk about how the sound being played at the time is an actual signal from the Sputnik, which makes me think that it's meant to be an American signals interception facility. Maybe even with the IBM logo added to make that clear
;) Either way an awesome video.
Either that or they weren't immune to product placement in the 50's
"Wow, look at that rover go! I want to be a scientist when I grow up!"
"HOLY SHIT, IS THAT SOME MAN ON MARS? OMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMGOMG I DON'T CARE THAT I NEED TO STUDY MATH!"
Guess which one comes out of the mouths of children. Probes might do good science, but man alone inspires our kids to become scientists.
Newcaster shouting "We've been pwned! All our basez belong to them!"
Ronald Reagan (after finishing a menage trois w/ Ollie North and his wife, the last 15 minutes of which consist of ole Nancy rolling her 15 feet of distended labia back into it's carrying harness) responds on nationwide television "Testing...testing...we will begin nuclear attack on Russia in 5...4...3-oh shit! Just kidding. To the American people, no need to be worried about the Russkies launching a, uh, well...a something. And we think it has a dog in it - and he does not, I repeat, does not have lasers mounted anywhere on him. Gotta go! Turn that fucking thing off! Nancy - you missed a roll, hide it quick you dumb bitch, the interns are puking!"
Thank you, thank you, I'll be here all week. And next week...and next week. Unless I get cancer like Bill Hicks, where I ripped some of this material from. All errors in time of events and who was alive or in what office are the guy w/ ID 580570, not me. I'm 580569. People get us confused a lot.
Hey, I just noticed that I have 69 in every single issued ID # that I can think of. My SSN, DL, TDC #, /. ID, everything. Fucking weird.
Mod parent down. This post is disgusting
...what happened with the Export Regulation list at that time???
Now you don't let me sell servers to Cuba ;)
Good Video.
What's so different between putting a man and a woman in space? I could see the "first child conceived in space" or the "first birth in space", but why does the (astro|cosmo)naut's gender matter in this context?
Oh, yeah, I forgot. If a "man" (which can refer to either a male or female when used to refer to the species collectively) goes to space, or the moon, or Uranus, it's not fair until we get a woman up there too. /. should run an "Ask Slashdot" article (or at least have a poll) about the extent to which political correctness (known as "PC bullshit" amongst us in the know) has infiltrated the scientific community.
I'm not saying you're a PC zealot, but saying something like that out of a context where it would make a scientific difference (menstrual cycles, neurobiology, etc.), which gender the lucky bastard who gets to get slung into space ahead of so-and-so many tons and tons of rocket propellant (which hopefully doesn't blow up and kill them, RIP Challenger) just says to me that irrelevant crap is penetrating deeper and deeper into our collective mindsets. Next we're going to have the NAACP suing NASA over their "Equal Opportunity" hiring practices or selection criteria to be an astronaut. I'd be tempted (just to be an asshole) to tell them that we've already sent chimps, but that's probably why I'm not the spokesperson for any large agencies or companies (because I'm a flippant guy with a crude sense of humor who thinks people take themselves too seriously given half a chance).
Now I'm being too serious and long-winded about a simple point. Time to take my happy pills and go back to drinking bourbon straight...
PC moderators can suck my White pierced, tattooed dick. If you think pride == hate, s/dick/Aryan meat mallet/g.
At least it was original (except for the part about mounted lasers and the reference to Nancy's labia - the latter is from a Bill Hicks' skit that would probably cause you to break down and cry for mommy, or tearfully admit to your roommate [while he was trying to coax you out of hiding under the mattress] that she touched you "down there and it felt good but I felt bad about it later" - because something really fucked-up must have happened to you so that you can't appreciate a joke, even a "disgusting" one) , somewhat relevant, and disgusting. Put that shit up on YouTube and I'd actually navigate over to that fucking site, watch it until I went temporarily blind (either from the screen glare or the moonshine), and then go to sleep thinking humorous thoughts.
Seriously?
Mod parent down. This post is disgusting
And clouds are generally white and fluffy, children aren't cute unless they're yours, and no matter what you try, people will make gross jokes. Most people actually delight in making gross jokes. Check IMDB ratings (as well as theater and DVD revenue) for PG-13 or R-rated comedies with a predominantly disgusting sense of humor. I guarantee you they dominate "clean humor" movies across the board. Especially if they make fun of politicians.
It's called human nature. Get over it. I, for one, would watch the Sputnik launch once or twice (I've seen it before a few times), but actually save a video depicting something like what I described.
PC moderators can suck my White pierced, tattooed dick. If you think pride == hate, s/dick/Aryan meat mallet/g.
Or more scary is the internet could have started as a purely commercial venture. Imagine if it had not existed, and AOL had created their own version of the internet. It is kind of what they were trying to do before the open internet kicked their butts. You would have several private nets (like in the 80s) and eventually, the big ones would buy out the small ones. You would have MUCH less content, as the price to enter the market with a website would be dictated by singular corporate interests.
What do you think you is happening now?
The "walled garden" of the iOS is bigger than Linux. iOS tops Linux
Facebook has 500 million active users, Steam 25 million. PlaystationHome has 14 million. AOL in its prime had 30 million.
Personally I find the introduction to a Roger Ramjet cartoon more informative (and with better music), though
That's no moon!
__ Someday, but not this morning, I'll finally learn to use the preview button.
Sorry no mod points future Mr. +5 funny. They referenced it as a moon 3 times. And appropriately enough, it is no moon. Lucky for us, it is also not a Death Star. The Soviets were pretty cool on not ending all life on Earth though so I doubt they'd have fired the Death Star at us either. If it wasn't for terrorists threatening to blow civilization apart, we could live happily right now. I guess world hunger, disease and lack of quality education kinda would hold the world back from a full scale peace party, but getting out of the cold war is still a plus.
God spoke to me.
You know, that AC almost looks like an effort to keep that post / quote visible ;)
One that hath name thou can not otter
The Story of Sputnik
One has to understand the the USSR scientific potential was the one of the former Soviet Union countries plus current Israel.
The stupid "socialist" enthusiasm was a result of an ugly massive civil war, which had roots in 19th century's deep social conflicts.
On the second thought, maybe he's onto something...
One that hath name thou can not otter
There _were_ several commercial internets (small 'i') - CompuServe, AOL and so on.
There were also free noncommercial global networks, FidoNET was the largest one.
So no, Internet could have happened even if it was purely commercial.
50 years ago this week? Sputnik was launched in 1957!
that the narrator use the word "intercontinental" to describe the first stage. A hint at it also being capable of dropping a nuke on US soil?
comment first, facts later. http://chem.tufts.edu/AnswersInScience/RelativityofWrong.htm
I know that Americans feel it dents their national pride to admit it, but the Russians categorically won the space race.
America achieved only a single victory - the first man on the moon - and then decided that was enough so just sat back from there.
However, the Russians had already done all the rest - first animal, first orbit, first man, first woman, first moonwalk.
So if you're happy as a nation to believe you 'won' because of a single victory, go ahead.
However, the rest of us know the truth.
I find your lack of original conversation disturbing.
"People don't want to learn linux" hasn't been a valid excuse since '03.
Or it was simply a ton of work to draw stuff by hand so they re-used pics where they could.
IBM continues to move their production to a communist nation and other parts of IBM. Yes, manufacturing esp. for exports is capitalism, but all else remains as a command economy. Basically, IBM should be denied all gov. contracts, at fed and state levels.
>> Maybe even with the IBM logo added to make that clear
> Either that or they weren't immune to product placement in the 50's
Check out _Ozzie_and_Harriet_ pushing Coke, or
_I_Love_Lucy_ pushing cigarettes.
Sputnik wasn't about "winning the space race". It's what started it. Could have said "the Soviets got off the starting blocks first." Before that, the US was at the snack bar, not aware that a race was about to begin.
...the future crusty old bastards are already drinking the Kool-Aid.
Now that you mention it, you're right. Christ, can't even make a joke anymore without it getting all complicated. Must be getting old. Gotta go - fuckin' kids on my lawn!
PC moderators can suck my White pierced, tattooed dick. If you think pride == hate, s/dick/Aryan meat mallet/g.
Looks like someone with mod points has an axe to grind here.