1997The Wi-Fi breakthrough came from radio astronomy research.

Wacky WorldInventions

Work by Australia’s CSIRO on radio astronomy led to a patented technique for reducing signal echoes indoors, which became part of Wi-Fi standards in the late 1990s.

Another wacky fact → All facts

Explore more Inventions facts

<span class="aj-year">1876</span>The first telephone words were “Mr. Watson, come here — I want to see you.”<span class="aj-year">1440</span>The printing press made books around 100 times faster to copy.<span class="aj-year">1913</span>Crossword puzzles are just over 100 years old.