Thread: Sort of metal related.... Laser inventer dies

This may get nuked by a moderator, but it is metal work related as today we use lasers to cut and weld metal, and mark metal and line up machine tools...

The inventer of the laser died yesterday

http://time.com/3687197/charles-town...laser-dies-99/

Although you would be hard pressed to find out about in on any Australian news site.... While when a cricketer dies, we get a weeks blanket coverage... I think I know who contributed more to the world...

I agree Richard, the laser was a truly major invention, it would be hard to overstate its significance.

Originally Posted by .RC.

......The inventer of the laser died yesterday ...

One of the several inventors of the laser died yesterday......

Originally Posted by .RC.

This may get nuked by a moderator, but it is metal work related as today we use lasers to cut and weld metal, and mark metal and line up machine tools...

The inventer of the laser died yesterday . . . .

The history of the laser makes a good read because it was way more complicated than a single individuals invention.

Townes had a savvy PR team and powerful lawyers so he managed to score most of the credit but he was only one a number of people involved.
Einstein predicted the laser in 1917 and Townes and 2 others ( Nikolay Basov, and Aleksandr Prokhorov) won the nobel prize for the invention.
The first functioning laster was not built bullt by Townes but by a bloke called Malman who won the race ahead of 3 others labs who were all trying to do the same thing.
The legal battles that followed were very interesting and
What a lot of younger folks don't realise is that for 20 years or so the laser was an invenation largely waiting for a purpose and just look at where they are used today.

Charles Towns didn't have a batting average of 32.66

We all use lasers every day, every phone call, VOIP call and internet search we make is carried by them.
No lasers, no metalwork forum so a very useful invention indeed.

What would Dr. Evil done without his "Laser Beam" ?

But seriously, my hat goes off to Albert E. for predicting the theory of Stimulated Emission.

Simon