4 ms·

Back then it was likely easier to lay the groundwork than in more populated cities. In addition there were great institutes of higher learning focusing on tech

by bherms 14y ago

Back then it was likely easier to lay the groundwork than in more populated cities. In addition there were great institutes of higher learning focusing on technology. Note this is just a small theory and in no way has any evidence to back it.

guard-of-terra 14y ago
But then, why all those technology institutes happened to grow there? Back when there weren't many people, or infrastructure, or tech?
- bherms 14y ago
  That's a good question and I'd be very interested in reading about why so many popped up out here. I posed a question about this on Quora so hopefully I can report back soon with some good answers.
- eclipxe 14y ago
  "Back when there weren't many people, or infrastructure" What time frame are you thinking of here? I'm not sure it is accurate - there was plenty of infrastructure and people in post WW2 Western US.
  - guard-of-terra 14y ago
    When those technological institutions were found. Maybe there were plenty, still I guess east coast had much more. Am I wrong?
    - sbov 14y ago
      You'd probably have to go to before WW2. On the earlier end, Stanford, UCLA, UCSB and Berkeley all trace their roots back to 1860s-1890s. But you'd probably have to go back to before the gold rush to go to a time when there weren't many people in the bay area: san francisco had about 1,000 people living there in 1848, 25,000 by 1849, and was the 10th most populous city in the US by 1870, and had 300,000 by 1890. Los Angeles blew up with the discovery of oil and entertainment and broke the top 10 in the 20's and the top 5 in the 30's. You aren't wrong, the east coast had a lot more people, but they still do today.
    - Getahobby 14y ago
      Both H (Bill Hewlett) and P (Dave Packard) were at Stanford prior to WW2. And Silicon Valley pre-dates the Internet era. See Fairchild Semiconductor, The Treacherous Eight, etc.
- mnutt 14y ago
  Steve Blank gave a very interesting Google tech talk about it, back in 1997: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFSPHfZQpIQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFSPHfZQpIQ

by bherms 14y ago

guard-of-terra 14y ago

But then, why all those technology institutes happened to grow there? Back when there weren't many people, or infrastructure, or tech?

bherms 14y ago
That's a good question and I'd be very interested in reading about why so many popped up out here. I posed a question about this on Quora so hopefully I can report back soon with some good answers.
eclipxe 14y ago
"Back when there weren't many people, or infrastructure" What time frame are you thinking of here? I'm not sure it is accurate - there was plenty of infrastructure and people in post WW2 Western US.
- guard-of-terra 14y ago
  When those technological institutions were found. Maybe there were plenty, still I guess east coast had much more. Am I wrong?
  - sbov 14y ago
    You'd probably have to go to before WW2. On the earlier end, Stanford, UCLA, UCSB and Berkeley all trace their roots back to 1860s-1890s. But you'd probably have to go back to before the gold rush to go to a time when there weren't many people in the bay area: san francisco had about 1,000 people living there in 1848, 25,000 by 1849, and was the 10th most populous city in the US by 1870, and had 300,000 by 1890. Los Angeles blew up with the discovery of oil and entertainment and broke the top 10 in the 20's and the top 5 in the 30's. You aren't wrong, the east coast had a lot more people, but they still do today.
  - Getahobby 14y ago
    Both H (Bill Hewlett) and P (Dave Packard) were at Stanford prior to WW2. And Silicon Valley pre-dates the Internet era. See Fairchild Semiconductor, The Treacherous Eight, etc.
mnutt 14y ago
Steve Blank gave a very interesting Google tech talk about it, back in 1997: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFSPHfZQpIQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFSPHfZQpIQ