(Newswire.net — September 5, 2017) — When it comes to entertainment, people are drawn to the next best things. Recycled stories, themes or techniques do not take long to become old news, so ingenuity is a vital part of pleasing the public. And as the consumer is the pulse of fields like cinema, song, games and gadgetry, they must always be up to date with the latest trends and innovations, most of which are provided by technology.
The significance of this particular industry is evident in more than its economic success, the UK securing £6.8 billion in digital tech investments in 2016, Tech Nation reports, with Spain and Italy lagging behind with the still considerable amount of £800 million. Creations great and small, simple and extraordinary are brought to the world’s doorstep at an astounding rate, indicating their inventors’ enthusiasm and potential.
Since these two industries – entertainment and technology – met, the wonders their audiences have been treated to are difficult to count, but there are some key scientific moments that shaped our contemporary definitions of fun.
Motion Pictures
Based on two optical phenomena, the persistence of vision and the phi phenomenon, a succession of contraptions came to be. Toys in the shape of twirling disks, Phenakistoscopes, or rotating drums, Zoetropes, still on sale by retailers like Ancient Magic Art Tools, were mounted with successive phase drawings, inspiring the originators of series photography, Eadweard Muybridge (1877) and Étienne-Jules Marey (1882), and then ultimately leading to the invention of the first motion-picture camera in 1888 by Thomas Edison’s laboratory assistant named Dickson. The historical journey of cinematography is far more complicated, especially when it comes to the concept of storytelling, but the essential truth is this: without the creations of the past our beloved blockbusters, tearjerkers and directorial gems may never have existed.
“Phonograph” by Javier Kohen (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Sound Recording
It was 1857 when Édouard-Léon Scott de Martinville put together the first phonautograph, which transcribed sound waves into lines. Subsequently, Alexander Bell’s 1875 successful transmission of such vibrations between receivers produced the radio. The year 1877 saw the introduction of Edison’s phonograph and 1969 that of digital recording pioneered by Thomas Stockham. The timeline continues to evolve even today as music and sound systems adapt to a world of Wi-Fi, YouTube and an array of supreme electronic devices. In the history of human-audio relations, the 21st century can boast of the clearest, most thrilling sound waves so far, Billboard Magazine currently ranking “Despacito” at the top of its Hot 100.
Source: Pixabay
Video Gaming
Boards and cards to consoles and virtual reality, the development of this exciting aspect of the entertainment industry is directly linked to technological advancements. The transformation of the computer spans centuries since the mid-1800s. The first touchscreens arrived in the 1970s, courtesy of Elographics et al. Multi-touch and HD displays have almost perfected the transfer of physical games to their digital forms. Slots, for instance, have dominated the online casino scene, according to CanadaCasino.net, the game proudly featured on many of its listed businesses, including Casino.com and Royal Vegas. At the end of the day, however, eSports is the greatest testament to the growing sensation that are video games, the latest partnership reported by ESPN being between Big Ten Network and Riot Games for a League of Legends championship.
As long as people need an outlet, a fun and motivational break from their daily routine, inventors will continue to apply their imagination in ways that put a smile on their fellow humans, while adding milestones to the never-ending road of technological evolution.