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Bell Labs levels of excellence don't normally show up in projects that are just for compliance or government relations. This can't be the whole story.
by closeparen 6y ago
Bell Labs levels of excellence don't normally show up in projects that are just for compliance or government relations. This can't be the whole story.
- jacobolus 6y agoFor an idea about telecom monopolies, read Tim Wu's book The Master Switch.
- pjmorris 6y agoI once attended a talk by Ron Graham (mathematician who'd once worked at Bell Labs) where he explained that they had applied graph theory to minimize the distance of cable runs to minimize the amount of copper they had to buy. And, transistors are certainly cheaper and more reliable than the vacuum tubes they replaced. Economics is still a factor in regulated environments.
- Aperocky 6y agoBell Labs are also ran by the scientists themselves, with AT&T largely not caring because it has to spend that money anyways. You can get a good grip of what's going on in the lab in Brian Kernighan's <Unix, A history and a memoir>. It's a good read.