Harlow (where Total Communications Training is based) is in the news
Former Harlow scientist Charles K Kao is one of three recipients of this year’s physics Nobel prize.
Mr Kao worked for many years as an engineer at Standard Telephones and Cables in London Road, the company that is now Nortel Networks. He is credited with the 1960s breakthrough in fibre optic technology that allowed thin cables to transmit light over much longer distances than had previously been possible. His team improved the efficiency of the glass materials used to construct fibres and today, fibre optics are an essential of the communication age. The modern telephony system and high speed internet broadband are built on the technology.
Born in 1933 in China, Mr Kao lives in the UK and holds dual British/American citizenship. He graduated in electrical engineering from the University of Greenwich in London.
His work is credited on the town’s welcome signs and in 2008 the building which houses the new business enterprise centre in Edinburgh Way was named jointly in his honour.
Mr Kao receives half of the award. The other half is shared by Americans Willard Boyle and George Smith, recognised for their invention of the CCD light detector popularly used in digital cameras. The invention has also transformed scientific observation and detectors are now included in the imaging systems of all space missions – including recent robotic vehicle excursions on Mars. CCD is also used in the Hubble telescope
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