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posted by martyb on Wednesday October 19 2016, @01:55AM   Printer-friendly
from the thanks-to-you,-we-can-meet-here dept.

Leo L. Beranek, an engineer whose company designed the acoustics for the United Nations and concert halls at Lincoln Center and Tanglewood, then built the direct precursor to the internet under contract to the Defense Department, died on Oct. 10 at his home in Westwood, Mass. He was 102.

His death was confirmed by his son James.

Dr. Beranek taught acoustic engineering at Harvard and M.I.T. for more than three decades after World War II, conducting research there that laid the groundwork for acoustic advances with wide social impact, including noise standards for public buildings and airports. But one of his most notable achievements was well outside the field of acoustics.

In 1969, the company he helped found, Bolt, Beranek & Newman, won a contract from the Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects Agency to build the first computer-based network, which came to be called Arpanet.

When were you first exposed to the Arpanet/Internet? Did you ever use "Bang Paths" for sending e-mail?


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  • (Score: 2) by TheGratefulNet on Wednesday October 19 2016, @03:22AM

    by TheGratefulNet (659) on Wednesday October 19 2016, @03:22AM (#415980)

    back in the mid 80's. I was still in college at the time and trying to start my career. I did have an interview there but did not get the job. wonder what it would have been like to have been at BBN in the early days.

    never got to see a fuzzball, either. I feel like I missed so many important things ;)

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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 19 2016, @03:49AM

    by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday October 19 2016, @03:49AM (#415987)

    If you want to know what it was like, read Leo's autobiography (referenced above). It's full of interesting stories about the early days of BBN, well before Arpanet.