Dates

Era

Inventions

Historical Context

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1880's - 1910

Telegraphs & Telephones

The world's first commercial telephone exchange on January 28, 1878. The operator would use a cord to physically connect the caller's line to the desired party's line on the switchboard. The switchboard was built by George W. Coy and made from scrap parts, including carriage bolts and teapot lid handles

With Westward Expansion came the need for long-distance communication.

The Industrial Revolution further pushed telecom development.

1910's - 1940

Mechanical Switching

During this era, the operator was eliminated by the Strowger switch. This technology converted the pulses from a rotary dial into mechanical steps (up and across) of a wiper arm, which physically connects wires in a grid of terminals, completing the circuit between the caller and the recipient.

Invented as a response to the unreliability of manual switchboards

1940's - 1970

Mainframe Computers

Mainframe computers were integrated into switching centers to help process calls. The first of the electronic switching systems (ESS) replaced mechanical relays with digital information controlled by computers. Telecom hubs began to gain computing power and act as larger connection points for greater communication. Traffic was generally still analog.

Key component in establishing technical dominancy among international power struggles throughout WWII.

1970's - 1990

Microcomputers

Previous telecommunication hubs expanded to serve multiple clients rather than just one company. This system, often referred to as colocation, arose due to the fact that hardware sizes shrunk drastically in this era. With operations in each building densifying, central meeting points for internet traffic developed in facilities that still stand to this day.

Fueled the arm race during the later stages of the Cold War and proliferated further due to the digital revolution

1990's - 2010

Hyperscale Data Centers

With the expansion of the internet in the late 90’s, businesses began to require more infrastructure to reliably house their virtual systems. These buildings became closer to what we know as data centers today with features like backup power sources, climate control, etc. These facilities became optimized for data storage, processing, and delivery. This era also begins environmental concerns on excessive energy use.

Response to a newly globalized market place with the need for an omnipresent online presence

See Google's Dalles Facility

2022 -

Artificial Intelligence

Today, internet processes have shifted greatly to rely more on artificial intelligence as a means of easily generating and sharing information. AI now demands powerful GPUs, pushing facilities to rely more on Liquid Cooling.

Optimism about the possibilities of artificial intelligence as well as its inherent security benefits post 9/11 swayed the US to adopt wide scale AI programs

See Abilene, TX Phase 2

1881 - UTP (Unshielded Twisted Pair) is the most common & inexpensive cable used in LANs (local area networks); used in ethernet & telephone lines.

1970 - Fiber optic cables began to have widespread usability in telecommunications. They were able to carry signals greater distance than copper & are now widely used in high-speed internet & telecom as well as data centers as we know them today. Revolutionized the use of purified glass to transmit light signals very fast.

Conclusion: Conductive materials have been pushed to their physical limits to most effectively and quickly transfer data over a range of distances. The trend towards longer distances begins to signal the push towards globalization.

The physicality of these cables begin to have real-world implications on our landscapes as the overlap and connect. Typically fiber optic cables and copper wire-based cables such as Cat 6 form into webbed networks that connect people regionally, nationally, and internationally. This brings our city landscapes to accommodate to the sea of cables formed by these connections.

1957 - Sputnik was launched as the first satellite.

The transmitted beeping radio signals that were heard worldwide accelerated the Space Race.

It transmitted simple radio beeps (“beep-beep”) back to Earth.

Satellites could send signals far beyond the limits of radio towers, enabling global broadcasts, telephone calls, and later internet backbones.

1962 - Telstar 1 was the first communication satellite that relayed TV and telephone signals over the Atlantic.

It directly led to the communications, weather, navigation, and scientific satellites we rely on today.

1973 - GPS was originally developed under DARPA. GPS was crucial in the Cold War as it allowed troops, ships, and aircraft to know their exact positions anywhere in the world, crucial for navigation and precise missile targeting.

1978 - First GPS satellite launched, eventually forming a global network that we use today for daily navigation.

Conclusion: The Space Race and fast advancements in satellite technology suggest a global struggle for power post WW2. These fast pace developments in that connected the world globally serve as the backdrop for the invention of the Internet.

1966 - Packet Switching is the concept of breaking data into smaller parts that are then sent independently across a network. Once they arrive at the destination, the packets are reassembled.

Conclusion: Wider, global connectivity flourished with the advent of satellites, but the internet brought virtual communication into homes and personal lives. Wireless technologies such as smartphones and Bluetooth devices were brought to the commercial market and filled the need for short-distance communication.

Conclusion: The drastic increase in square footage between the switch from Data Centers to Hyperscale AI Data Centers constitutes a worrying shift in scale. With later examples such as the Dalles Facility and the Abilene, TX facility operating more as campuses, these buildings are gain a larger and larger impact on city landscapes.

Conclusion: The technological developments post the advent of the Internet allowed for massive jumps of scale in how much energy data centers are able to output daily.