It may sound surprising, but the creation of Wi-Fi is intrinsically linked to one of Hollywood's biggest stars of the 30s: Hedy Lamarr.
The story of Wi-Fi began with Lamarr, but like many inventions, many people contributed to the creation of the Wi-Fi we have today. And many more continue to work on improving it.
The beginning of the hand of Hedy Lamarr
The Austrian actress of the 1930s and 40s filled every theater, making her one of Hollywood's biggest stars. However, in addition to being an actress, she was an impressive creative mind . A woman who famously declared, "Any girl can be glamorous. All you have to do is stand still and look stupid." An ironic statement from a glamorous, sophisticated woman of outstanding intelligence.
She showed promise at school; her teachers considered her a gifted child, however, she wanted to pursue a career in dramatic arts, which led her to worldwide fame.
In the midst of a brilliant acting career, World War II broke out. Hedy, with her excellent connections and access to privileged information about Germany, began working for the U.S. government . She was assigned to the military technology department, where she witnessed firsthand how easily the signals guiding American military missiles could be intercepted. Together with her friend George Antheil, a composer, she devised a system based on a musical principle that could detect guided torpedoes. It's also true that Hedy's achievement went largely unrecognized at the time.
In 1962, during the Cuban Missile Crisis, this technology developed by Hedy was important for locating and controlling torpedoes, and today it is the basis of satellite positioning systems (GPS, for example) and the beginning of WiFi.
Other previous steps
In the 70s, a wireless network was created between the Hawaiian Islands . Data was successfully transmitted between the islands.
WaveLAN was a system created in 1991 to connect cash registers and developed by NCR and AT&T. This advancement was significant in the history of women scientists who contributed to technology.
All these little steps that preceded Wi-Fi weren't much appreciated at the time. However, there would come a point where everything would change and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers would look to each of these steps to create the 802.11 standard. This is what we know today as WiFi.
Wi-Fi birth
The WiFi we know, which was born in the 1990s, was developed by John O'Sullivan and his team of scientists in Australia.
The team was part of the CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation). Creating what we know as WiFi today involved using complex mathematics and detailed knowledge of radio waves and their behavior.
We've mentioned John O'Sullivan, but we should also highlight John Deane, Graham Daniels, and Diethel Ostry. All of them joined CSIRO in the mid-1970s and worked on the development of wireless connectivity.
Wi-Fi launch
The word "WiFi ," which many might assume is an abbreviation of the trademark "wireless fidelity," has no specific meaning, according to Phil Belanger, one of the founders of the WiFi Alliance (Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance). The name originated as a marketing strategy.
The black and white WiFi logo and name were created by the agency Interbrand, which launched the brand. Interbrand submitted a total of 10 names to the WiFi Alliance, and this was the winning name.
Wi-Fi began to become part of consumers' lives in 1997 , when the set of standards that define wireless LAN communication was created.
In 2003, Wi-Fi speed and coverage were greater , allowing it to compete with wired connections. Since then, Wi-Fi has continued to evolve and improve. Its main advantage is that it is easy to install, use, and inexpensive.
Thanks to everyone who contributed to the invention of Wi-Fi, we have this wireless connection , so essential and now so commonplace in our daily lives. Because... who can imagine life without Wi-Fi now? It's an invention that has facilitated connection with people from all over the world, allowed people to work from anywhere, and made life simpler and wireless.
And the story of this invention began with that Hollywood star, who not only triumphed in film but was also a magnificent inventor. She was so important to history that in Austria, Inventor's Day is celebrated on November 9th in honor of Hedy Lamarr, her birthday.