May 1, 2019, 6:45PM-8:30PM 

The Origins of Silicon Valley: Why and How It Happened Here 

IEEE Computer Society of Silicon Valley
IEEE CS Chapter of Silicon Valley is sponsoring this free technical event 

Speaker: Paul Wesling
IEEE Life Fellow and Distinguished Lecturer (retired from HP/Tandem)  
 
Location: Immanuel Lutheran Church,
        14103 Saratoga Ave, Saratoga (Map)
 
                                   (Register here)

Sponsor: IEEE Computer Society of Silicon Valley
Sponsor/Host: Trust Fund Educational Seminar, Immanuel Lutheran Church 
Co-Sponsor:
        · https://ieee-region6.org/scv-cis/
        · http://www.valleyml.ai/
        . Silicon Valley Engineering Council https://www.svec.org/

PROGRAM:
6:45PM – 7:30PM Networking/Wine/Appetizers 
7:30PM – 8:30PM Lecture
 
Abstract:
Why did Silicon Valley come into being?  
The storygoes back to local Hams (amateur radio operators) trying to  break RCA’s tube patents, “angel” investors, the sinking of the  Titanic, Fred Terman and Stanford University, local invention of  high-power tubes, WW II and radar, William Shockley’s mother  living in Palo Alto, 
and the SF Bay Area infrastructure that developed 
– these factors pretty much determined that  the semiconductor and IC industries would be located in the 
Santa Clara Valley, and that the Valley would remain  the world’s innovation center as new technologies emerged 
– computers, then software, mobile, biotech, Big Data,  VR, and now autonomous vehicles 
– and it would become the model for innovation worldwide.   

Bio:
Paul Wesling  

Paul Wesling, an IEEE Life Fellow and Distinguished Lecturer and ACM member, has observed the Valley for decades as an engineer, executive, resident, and educator, and has presented this talk world‐wide. In this non-technical presentation, he gives an exciting and colorful history of device technology development and innovation that began in Palo Alto, then spread across the Santa Clara Valley during and following World War II.  You’ll meet some of the colorful characters – Leonard Fuller, Lee de Forest, Bill Eitel, Charles Litton, Fred Terman, David Packard, Bill Hewlett, Russ Varian and others – who came to define the worldwide electronics industries through their inventions and process development.
You’ll understand some of the novel management approaches that have become the hallmark of tech startups and high-tech firms, and the kinds of engineers/developers who thrive in this work environment.
You’ll handle an original Audi on tube, invented by Lee de Forest and improved by him in Palo Alto.
Paul will end by telling us about some current local organizations that keep alive the spirit of the Hams, the Homebrew Computer Club, and the other entrepreneurial groups where geeks gather to invent the future.

Open to all to attend
Online registration is needed. If you did not register, seating is not guaranteed.)