{"id":649,"date":"2012-08-31T23:34:09","date_gmt":"2012-09-01T06:34:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/chineseeinstein.wordpress.com\/?p=649"},"modified":"2012-08-31T23:34:09","modified_gmt":"2012-09-01T06:34:09","slug":"americas-greatest-modern-invention-was","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/jason-fu.com\/blog\/americas-greatest-modern-invention-was\/","title":{"rendered":"America’s greatest modern invention was"},"content":{"rendered":"

Definitely Facebook. By a long shot. No questions asked.<\/p>\n

By “modern invention,” I mean within the last thirty years.<\/p>\n

The internet was “invented” around the 90s, but was the creation of a Swiss engineer (even though someone in America claims to have invented it). Some may say the iPhone or the iPod, but it’s verily not.<\/p>\n

Facebook is the one thing that has nearly everybody in the world connected. I’m currently connected with people in my vicinity for sure, but I also have connections now with people in New York, Canada, Mexico, Taiwan, Korea, China, Rome, Brussells, France… the list goes on. It singlehandedly brought together a generation of people to spread news or share about their mundane lives. And it’s brilliant. Nothing else has brought people of the world together so well since World War II.<\/p>\n

Why not the iPhone?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

The iPhone is a marvel in its own rite, sure, but it doesn’t bring people together the way Facebook does. It’s restricted to the country in which you’re currently residing, and that’s just how mobile phone carriers want it. Also, this Samsung \/ Apple debate is just bollocks. But that’s a post for another time.<\/p>\n

Why not the computer?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Well, the computer isn’t exactly a “modern invention.” The first computers were seen around World War II, used for deciphering code that was intercepted by Americans. The mainframes (or towers, as we now call them) were about the size of rooms and used up way more electricity than was safe.<\/p>\n

The first personal computer was released in 1965. Read more about it here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Why not C++?<\/strong><\/p>\n

For those of you who don’t know, C++ is just about the most dominant programming language today–without it, we wouldn’t have iPhones or computers or most of the video games that people play today. It influenced Java, which can be used on computers and on old, dumb phones that could hardly run anything else. But you probably haven’t heard of it. And that’s why it’s not #1.<\/p>\n

C++ was the creation of one genius named Bjarne Stroustrup who worked at AT&T Bell Labs. It came out in 1979 (which is recent enough to be considered a “modern invention”) and is still being used today. I’ve heard that Stroustrup died shortly after Jobs did, but I’m seeing now that it’s not true. Even if he had passed, nobody would know.<\/p>\n

Why not the XBox 360?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Don’t make me hit you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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