Route128History.org

Techneum: Putting the Region Back on the Map -- and Keeping it There

 

Techneum is a proposal to: 

> Recognize and celebrate the achievements of the Route 128 region – its people, companies, and institutions  -- by gathering and linking the babel of industry associations, economic development groups, and investment and entreprenurial groups under a comprehensive banner.

> Create a permanent exhibit of artifacts and explanatory elements, complemented by temporary and topical exhibits…filling the “cultural” role of the Computer History Museum and the Intel Museum in California.  For example:

• an exhibit could highlight key development at Harvard and MIT (especially project Whirlwind), the significance of the minicomputer industry, and vital associated developments such as high-speed A/D conversion.

• MIT Rad Lab’s pioneering work in radar and microwave communication and subsequent developments in air traffic control, missile guidance, etc.

• Developments in time-sharing and  virtualization

• The first Killer Apps in software

• The roots of the Internet

• The medical-technical complex within the region

• Etc.

> Provide a central website recognized as the “hub for the Hub” – providing forums for ideas, links to organizations, and resources, and a definitive source of information about the region and its tech history.  This will be not merely an intellectual resource documenting and communicating facts but also a first stop for starting a business, expanding a business, finding  partners, seeking out expertise, locating a job, protecting intellectual property, connecting with relevant state, local, or federal resources.

> Provide a physical site for meetings and exhibitions

> Develop and fund shared a university-grade “library” of books and periodicals AND access to science, business, and engineering databases that are usually too expensive for individuals or startups to access.

> Provide lab and light R&D space

> Tell the story of the region "then" and now...