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Remembering Bell Labs as legendary idea factory prepares to leave N.J. home

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Re: Remembering Bell Labs as legendary idea factory prepares to leave N.J. home

#71

Post by tomcam »

ioblomov wrote: post #68
tomcam wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m not a nostalgic person, but for some reason I wish irrationally that that Murray Hill building could be preserved as is. I read so much about of it in the history of computing, and just like (from the pictures) the building interior itself so much I just feel like I missed out on some thing not to have been there myself. I was lucky enough to work at Microsoft in building 2, one of 8 matching buildings from the m…

The whole complex (immortalized as Lumon HQ in Severance ) is landmarked so presumably it can’t be messed with too much. Even apart from the historical significance, it’s a masterpiece of mid-century design. Its architect, Eero Saarinen, also did the St. Louis Arch and, my personal favorite, the TWA terminal at JFK, which reopened as a hotel in 2019. If you’re ever stuck on a layover there, do check it out! https://e…

Thanks for the reminder. I agree, that appears to be a massive triumph of preservation.

Re: Remembering Bell Labs as legendary idea factory prepares to leave N.J. home

#72

Post by tomcam »

dimator wrote: post #49
tomcam wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m not a nostalgic person, but for some reason I wish irrationally that that Murray Hill building could be preserved as is. I read so much about of it in the history of computing, and just like (from the pictures) the building interior itself so much I just feel like I missed out on some thing not to have been there myself. I was lucky enough to work at Microsoft in building 2, one of 8 matching buildings from the m…

It's interesting how much we associate a place with the fulfillment (career) we had there. I always smile fondly when I pass by the buildings I worked in years ago, in the valley. It's a strange thought that the building I spent so many hours, days, years in is now just a thing seen out of the passenger window as I drive by, for maybe 2 seconds.

In my particular case, the best jobs I had also happened to be at places where I could think hard, then go take a walk outside and enjoy the fresh air. Building two at Microsoft was nestled in a sort of mini forest, and taking a jog around that area in the winter was a pleasure almost to good to put into words.

Re: Remembering Bell Labs as legendary idea factory prepares to leave N.J. home

#73

Post by tomcam »

NegativeLatency wrote: post #54
dleink wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Any recommendations for books on the history of computing from that period?

Not Microsoft but an enjoyable account from that time: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Soul_of_a_New_Machine

Agreed, that is a good portrait of what it was like

Re: Remembering Bell Labs as legendary idea factory prepares to leave N.J. home

#74

Post by Zigurd »

Scubabear68 wrote: post #40

Not just Murray Hill, but all of their offices were special. I went to Holmdel High and my girlfriend’s dad was a distinguished engineer at the Holmdel Bell Labs installation, we drove by regularly (loved the transistor water tower), and got to visit him inside the building a few times. It was awe inspiring as an 18 year old to enter into such a sacred hall of engineering and science. I had a strong engineering bent…

I got to visit the Holmdel site a couple times, once in its heyday and once after it was half empty and down at the heels - an eerie vibe. It was an awesome sight when first arriving. It is colossal. Pictures don't do it justice. A symbol of economic power. Later I learned it was largely made possible by the government negotiating a deal with AT&T. It was a kind of crony capitalism Camelot. An industrial policy monument. But it was glorious. Saarinen designed a lot of Peak Industrial America headquarters.

Re: Remembering Bell Labs as legendary idea factory prepares to leave N.J. home

#75

Post by whimsicalism »

HarHarVeryFunny wrote: post #47
whimsicalism wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Any prestige research lab - MS, Google, OAI, etc.

I'm not sure how many, if any, are doing blue sky research (vs product-directed "research") any more the way that Bell Labs, IBM Watson and Xerox Parc used to do. Look at what's going on with ML/AI - DeepMind now merged with Google Brain seemingly with a product focus, FAIR now moved into a product group alongside Meta's GenAI group, Microsoft essentially outsourcing AI to OpenAI, OpenAI may as well call itself GPTCo…

> DeepMind now merged with Google Brain seemingly with a product focus, FAI

I don’t really agree that training massive causal LMs is a “product focus”.

I agree that there is an increasing product focus in orgs like OAI, but a lot of that is coming from new growth rather than trading off with base research.

Re: Remembering Bell Labs as legendary idea factory prepares to leave N.J. home

#76

Post by lgkk »

polishdude20 wrote: post #45
tomcam wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I’m not a nostalgic person, but for some reason I wish irrationally that that Murray Hill building could be preserved as is. I read so much about of it in the history of computing, and just like (from the pictures) the building interior itself so much I just feel like I missed out on some thing not to have been there myself. I was lucky enough to work at Microsoft in building 2, one of 8 matching buildings from the m…

I wonder where can you find those types of places currently? Places developing the next mRNA vaccines for cancer? Places developing AI? Electric cars?

NASA.

I know a few people who wanted to get away from the FANG hype grind and went to NASA.

They tell me they’re doing actual engineering for engineerings sake. Which sounds great.

Salary obviously not comparable to FANG 400k plus but the satisfaction and pride is well worth the sacrifice to them.

Me and most of my friends are “super American” like I’m an immigrant who wears USA hats and t shirts. I would love to work at NASA once I have established a little place for myself here. I would be so proud to contribute to this country and its success in space and research.

Re: Remembering Bell Labs as legendary idea factory prepares to leave N.J. home

#78

Post by coliveira »

tomcam wrote: post #52
polishdude20 wrote: post #45

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder where can you find those types of places currently? Places developing the next mRNA vaccines for cancer? Places developing AI? Electric cars?

I think that if you have a PhD in the right field and enough hip publications that many of the FAANG companies still have research teams like that operating in a diminished capacity. It appears to me that many of these positions have been replaced by administrators who are more interested in hiring to a specific set of demographics.

Have you ever seen something fundamental coming from FAANG? No, and you won't, because what they're doing (even when very technical) is purely for the improvement of their business. Things like AI are coming from smaller groups such as OpenAI, even when backed by big companies like Microsoft.

Re: Remembering Bell Labs as legendary idea factory prepares to leave N.J. home

#79

Post by 101011 »

Lyngbakr wrote: post #21

I'm currently halfway through The Idea Factory: Bell Labs & the Great Age of American Innovation by Jon Gertner. The stories and characters behind all the inventions and ideas are absolutely fascinating, as is the culture they cultivated there. Definitely recommended!

I heard about this book from hackernews a year or two ago. I'm not a big non-fiction fan, but I absolutely devoured that book. Strong plus one about Gertner's great work here.
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