James West (r) with Gerhard Sessler (l) Bell Labs 1976
For many reasons, this is a really nice story. It is about a kid with The Knack, a kid who, like young James Clerk Maxwell, wanted to understand how things work. It is also a technology story, the story of the invention of a device very important to us: the electret microphone. (Remember the earlier carbon mics in telephones? I’ll bet more than a few of our readers are guilty of stealing a few of those mics from pay phones.) And it is a reminder of the benefits of helping kids who might need a mentor… or and Elmer.
Thanks Hack-A-Day. And three cheers for James West.