AUGUST 12th - The Echo1 Bean

On this day in 1960, a big space balloon named Echo1A was launched by NASA. While big-ass space balloons seem pretty cool in and of themselves, Echo 1--as it later came to be known because that extra A was keeping people from truly appreciating the Free Love Era that was the 60’s--was particularly important because it was the 1st communications satellite ever sent into space, essentially starting the informational boom that makes it possible for you to read this little post over the interwebs on your smart phone or tablet or pc or google glass or your samsung watch or whatever you use to ceaselessly scour the net for something to distract you from the increasing entropy that surrounds life, which, sadly, I really do not understand; thermodynamics was never my strong suit. So let’s just say you’re bored and looking for entertainment. In any case, communications satellites look a tad bit different than the 100 feet in diameter metallic balloon that floated 1000 miles above the Earth after it was launched. But Echo 1 was when and where it started. It’s all very similar to when Jack sold his cow for beanstalk beans and they were thrown out by Jack’s mum in a fit of annoyance, only to have those beans sprout into a giant stalk that reached up to the heavens begging for Jack to climb up and see what adventures awaited him. And just like the rewards that our society has received from the Echo1 Bean that birthed the information age, Jack was able to get the Giant’s golden eggs and golden harp and whatever other gold things were up there at the top of the beanstalk, get rich, and marry a princess. The parallels are uncanny. Okay, okay. Maybe that analogy is a bit like Billy Madison comparing the Industrial Revolution to the Puppy That Lost His Way, but I’ll have you remember that Billy did indeed win the Academic Decathlon and saved his father’s company. Because although the puppy was a dog, the industry, well that, my friends, was a revolution. Just remember that what you do in this life Echoes1 in the interwebs. Knibb High Football Rules!

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