Editing 1980s (section)

==Science and technology==
{{main|1980s in science and technology}}

===Medicine and biology===
The 1980s had many fundamental advances in medicine and biology. The first [[surrogate pregnancy]] of an unrelated child took place on 13 April 1986, in Michigan.<ref name="people.com"/> The first [[genetic engineering|genetically modified]] crops, [[Nicotiana|tobacco]] (''Nicotiana'') plants were grown in China in 1988.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://artsci.wustl.edu/~anthro/research/stone/stone-annualreview-2010.pdf |title=The Anthropology of Genetically Modified Crops |access-date=2015-10-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140422062254/http://artsci.wustl.edu/~anthro/research/stone/stone-annualreview-2010.pdf |archive-date=2014-04-22 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

[[Gene therapy]] techniques became established by the end of the 1980s, allowing [[gene tagging]] and [[gene therapy]] to become a possibility, both of which were first performed in human beings in May 1989 and September 1990, respectively.

===Electronics and computers===
[[Arcade game|Arcade]] and video games had been growing in popularity since the late 1970s, and by 1982 were a major industry. But a variety of factors, including a glut of low-quality games and the rise of home computers, caused a [[North American video game crash of 1983|tremendous crash]] in late 1983. For the next three years, the video game market practically ceased to exist in the US. But in the second half of the decade, it would be revived by [[Nintendo]], whose Famicom console and mascot [[Mario]] had been enjoying considerable success in Japan since 1983. Renamed the [[Nintendo Entertainment System]] (NES), it would claim 90% of the American video game market by 1989. The 1980s are considered to be the decade when video games achieved massive popularity. In 1980, Pac-Man was introduced to the arcades, and became one of the most popular video games of all time. Also in 1980, [[Game & Watch]] was created; it was not one of the best known game systems, but it facilitated mini-games and was concurrent with the NES. ''[[Donkey Kong (arcade game)|Donkey Kong]]'', released in 1981, was a smash arcade hit and market breakthrough for [[Nintendo]]. ''[[Super Mario Bros.]]'', ''[[Super Mario Bros. 2]]'', ''[[Super Mario Bros. 3]]'', ''[[The Legend of Zelda]]'', and the ''[[Mega Man]]'' series would become major hits for the console.

<gallery widths="190px" perrow="5">
File:ColecoVision-Console-FL.jpg|The [[ColecoVision]] video game System.
File:NES-Console-Set.jpg|The [[Nintendo Entertainment System]]'s Control Deck.
File:Atari-7800-wControl-Pad-L.jpg|[[Atari 7800]] System (PAL system with Joypad controller).
File:Sega-Mega-Drive-JP-Mk1-Console-Set.jpg|[[Sega Genesis|Mega Drive]], known as the Genesis in North America, succeeded the [[Master System]].
</gallery>

The [[personal computer]] experienced explosive growth in the 1980s, transitioning from a hobbyist's toy to a full-fledged consumer product. The IBM PC, launched in 1981, became the dominant computer for professional users. [[Commodore International|Commodore]] created the most popular home computers of both 8-bit and 16-bit generations. [[MSX]] standard was the dominant computer platform in Japan and in most parts of Asia. [[Apple Computer]] superseded its [[Apple II]] and [[Apple Lisa|Lisa]] models by introducing the first [[Macintosh 128K|Macintosh]] computer in 1984. It was the first commercially successful personal computer to use a [[graphical user interface]] (GUI) and [[Mouse (computing)|mouse]],<ref>{{cite web|last=Polsson |first=Ken |url=http://www.islandnet.com/~kpolsson/applehis/appl1984.htm |title=Chronology of Apple Computer Personal Computers |date=2009-07-29 |access-date=2009-08-27 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090821105822/http://www.islandnet.com/~kpolsson/applehis/appl1984.htm |archive-date=21 August 2009 }} See May 3, 1984.</ref> which started to become general features in computers after the middle of the decade. Electronics and computers were also at the forefront of the advertising industry, with many commercials like "1984" from Apple achieving acclaim and pop-culture relevance.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://frahmdigital.com/80s-commercials/|title=Best 80s Commercials that are Totally Tubular! (VIDEOS)|date=9 September 2020|website=Frahm Digital}}</ref>

<gallery widths="190" perrow="5">
File:IBM PC 5150.jpg|[[IBM PC]] (model 5150), the first [[DOS]]-compatible PC was released in 1981. The IBM PCs and compatible models from other vendors would become the most widely used computer systems in the world.
File:Commodore-64-Computer.png|[[Commodore 64]], with sales estimated at more than 17 million units between 1982 and 1994 became the best-selling computer model of all time.
File:Disk smith vz200 front.jpg|[[VTech Laser 200]], 8-bit home computer from 1983
File:Macintosh 128k transparency.png|The [[Macintosh 128K]], the first commercially successful personal computer to use a graphical user interface, was introduced to the public in 1984.<ref name="appleconfidential2">{{Cite book|last=Linzmayer|first=Owen W.|title=Apple Confidential 2.0|publisher=No Starch Press|year=2004|page=113|url=http://www.owenink.com|isbn=1-59327-010-0}}</ref>
File:Ibm-convertible.jpg|The [[IBM PC Convertible]] (model 5140; 1986), the first [[DOS]]-compatible PC to be a [[laptop]] and to use the standard {{frac|3|1|2}}-inch floppy disk drives.
File:Amiga500 system.jpg|The [[Amiga 500]], the first "low-end" 16 and 32 bit multimedia home/personal computer, was introduced in October 1987.<ref name="amigaHistory">{{cite web|first=Gareth|last=Knight|url=http://www.amigahistory.co.uk/a500batman.html|title=A500 Batman Bundle|publisher=Amigahistory.co.uk|date=2002-06-17|access-date=2013-07-24}}</ref>
File:US Robotics Courier 2400 telephone modem (mid to end of 1980s) for dial-up internet access, powered on (edited).jpg|[[US Robotics]] Courier 2400 [[telephone modem]]
</gallery>

[[Walkman]] and [[boombox]]es, invented during the late 1970s, became very popular as they were introduced to various countries in the early 1980s, and had a profound impact on the music industry and youth culture. Consumer [[Videocassette recorder|VCR]]s and video rental stores became commonplace as [[VHS]] won out over the competing [[Betamax]] standard. In addition, in the early 1980s various companies began selling compact, modestly priced [[synthesizer]]s to the public. This, along with the development of [[MIDI|Musical Instrument Digital Interface]] (MIDI), made it easier to integrate and synchronize synthesizers and other electronic instruments, like drum machines, for use in musical composition.

[[High definition television]] (HDTV) of both the analog and digital variety were first developed in the 1980s though their use did not become widespread until the mid-2000s.

In 1981, [[Hayes Microcomputer Products]] started selling the Smartmodem. The Smartmodem paved the way for the modern modems that exist today, mainly because it was the first modem to transform what had previously required a two-stage process into a process involving only one stage. The Smartmodem contributed to the rise in popularity of [[Bulletin board system|BBS]] systems in the 1980s and early 1990s, which were the main way to connect to remote computers and perform various social and entertainment activities before the [[Internet]] and the [[World Wide Web]] finally became popular in the mid-1990s.

The 1980s witnessed a rapid expansion in the communications industry. Almost a decade after [[Martin Cooper (inventor)|Martin Cooper]], then an employee of [[Motorola]], made the first mobile phone call in 1973, [[Millicom|Millicom Inc.]], a telecommunications agency, and [[E.F. Johnson Company|E.F. Johnson & Co.]],  introduced the first portable cellular phone commercially available for use on a cellular network, the "Lunch Box" in 1981.<ref name=":0">Dunnewijk, Theo; Hultén, Staffan (2007-08-01). [https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0736585307000226 "A brief history of mobile communication in Europe".] ''Telematics and Informatics''. Mobile Communications: From Cellular to Ad-hoc and Beyond. '''24'''(3): 164–179. [[Doi (identifier)|doi]]:[[doi:10.1016/j.tele.2007.01.013|10.1016/j.tele.2007.01.013.]] [[ISSN (identifier)|ISSN]] [https://search.worldcat.org/issn/0736-5853 0736-5853.]</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Agar |first=Jon |title=Constant touch: a global history of the mobile phone |date=2003 |publisher=Icon Books |isbn=978-1-84046-541-9 |edition=Reprint |series=Revolutions in science |location=Cambridge}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web |date=2024-12-23 |title=Martin Cooper {{!}} Biography, Inventions, & Facts {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com:443/biography/Martin-Cooper |access-date=2024-12-31 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref> Two years later, Motorola launched the [[Motorola DynaTAC|DynaTAC 8000X]] or the "Brick," the first commercially available handheld mobile phone weighing 3 pounds (1.4&nbsp;kg).<ref name=":1" /> While revolutionary, these early products were bulky and challenging to handle. This led to fierce competition in the market, with companies vying to produce a lighter, more portable phone, setting the stage for the future of mobile technology.

The race for a slimmer version of the portable cell phone was underway, and technology entrepreneur [[Jan Stenbeck]] was determined to lead the charge. Stenbeck founded the tech start-up [[Technophone]] with a singular goal in mind: to create a lightweight, pocket-sized mobile phone. In 1986, under the guidance of [[Excel mobile phones|Technophones]] [[chief executive officer]], Nils Martensson, the company unveiled the first pocket-sized mobile phone, the Excell PCT105.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Becket, Michael. [https://galeapps.gale.com/apps/auth?userGroupName=&sid=bookmark-TGRH&origURL=https%3A%2F%2Fgo.gale.com%2Fps%2Fi.do%3Fp%3DTGRH%26u%3D%26id%3DGALE%257CIO0702090869%26v%3D2.1%26it%3Dr%26sid%3Dbookmark-TGRH&prodId=TGRH "Excell unveils new portable telephone."] Daily Telegraph, 13 July 1987, p. 20. The Telegraph Historical Archive, Accessed 25 Oct. 2024.</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-11-18 |title=Vintage Mobiles |url=http://www.gsmhistory.com/vintage-mobiles/#technophone_pc105t_1986 |access-date=2024-12-31 |website=GSM History: History of GSM, Mobile Networks, Vintage Mobiles |language=en-US}}</ref>

<gallery widths="190px" perrow="4">
File:Motorola DynaTAC.jpg|In 1983, the Motorola DynaTAC 8000X becomes the first commercially available '''[[mobile phone]]''' model
File:Trimline December 1986.jpg|[[Trimline telephone]]
File:PIC_0011_Samsung_SF100.jpg|During the decade the standardization of Group 3 facsimile terminals by the International Telecommunication Union contributed to the significant spread of the '''[[fax]]''' machine.
File:VHS vs Betamax size.jpg|[[VHS]] won out over the competing '''[[Betamax]]''' standard, becoming the leading standard in home video systems
File:Hayes 300 Baud Smartmodem 02.jpg|[[Hayes Microcomputer Products|Hayes]]'s '''Smartmodem'''
</gallery>

=== Information technology ===
* During the decade [[Microsoft]] released the operating systems '''[[MS-DOS]]''' (1981), '''[[Windows 1.0]]''' (1985), and '''[[Windows 2.0]]''' (1987).
* Mathematical Software [[MathLab]], introduced in 1988, by [[Stephen Wolfram]].
* The '''[[CD]]''' – the most basic CD ("Digital Audio Compact Disc") was released in October 1982 for distribution and listening to [[digital audio]], and at the time contained up to 74 minutes of music.
* '''[[TCP/IP]]''': [[ARPANET]] officially changed its main protocol from NCP to [[TCP/IP]] on 1 January 1983, when the new protocols were activated. The TCP/IP protocol will become the dominant communications protocol from then onwards, and would be used as the foundation on which the [[Internet]] would be based.
* The '''[[GNU Project]]''' (1983). The '''[[Free Software Foundation]]''' (1985).
* '''[[FidoNet]]''' – In 1984, FidoNet was launched, enabling [[Bulletin board system|BBS]] users to send private messages (e-mails) and public messages (in the forum) between all BBS systems that were connected to the FidoNet network, in addition to sending files to each other. The rise in popularity and availability of the Internet around the world around the mid-1990s eventually contributed to the irrelevance of FidoNet.
* '''[[World Wide Web]]''' – In 1989, the British computer scientist [[Tim Berners-Lee]] first proposed a project to his employer [[CERN]], based on the concept of [[hypertext]], to facilitate sharing and updating information among researchers. In mid-November 1989 he would develop the first successful communication between a [[Hypertext Transfer Protocol]] (HTTP) client and server via the [[internet]]. In the coming years Berners-Lee developed the system which would later become the foundation of the [[World Wide Web]].

<gallery widths="190" perrow="5">
File:MS-Dos screenshot.png|In 1981, Microsoft introduced the [[MS-DOS]] operating system, which would become the world's most widely used [[operating system]] in the 1980s and first half of the 1990s.
File:CD autolev crop new.jpg|The most basic [[CD]] was first introduced in October 1982 for the purpose of distribution and listening to digital audio
File:Tim Berners-Lee.jpg|In 1989, the British computer scientist [[Tim Berners-Lee]] first proposed the [[World Wide Web]], which he would develop in the coming years
</gallery>

===Space exploration===
[[File:Space Shuttle Columbia launching.jpg|thumb|The [[Space Shuttle Columbia|Space Shuttle ''Columbia'']] seconds after engine ignition, 1981]]
American interplanetary probes continued in the 1980s, the Voyager duo being the most known. After making a flyby of Jupiter in 1979, they went near Saturn in 1980–1981. ''[[Voyager 2]]'' reached Uranus in 1986 (just a few days before the ''Challenger'' disaster), and Neptune in 1989 before the probes exited the Solar System.

No American probes were launched to Mars in the 1980s, and the [[Viking program|Viking]] probes, launched there in 1975, completed their operations by 1982. The Soviets launched two Mars probes in 1988, but they failed.

The arrival of [[Halley's Comet]] in 1986 was met by a series of Soviet, Japanese and [[European Space Agency]] (ESA) probes, namely [[Halley Armada]].

After a six-year hiatus, American space flights with astronauts resumed with the launch of the [[Space Shuttle Columbia|Space Shuttle ''Columbia'']] in April 1981. The shuttle program progressed smoothly from there, with three more orbiters entering service in 1983–1985. But that all came to an end with the [[Space Shuttle Challenger disaster|tragic loss]] of the [[Space Shuttle Challenger|''Challenger'']] ([[STS-51-L]]) on 28 January 1986, taking with it seven astronauts, including [[Christa McAuliffe]], who was to have been the first teacher in space. In full view of the world, a faulty O-ring on the right solid rocket booster allowed hot gases to burn through the external fuel tank and cause it to explode, destroying the shuttle in the process. Extensive efforts were made to improve [[NASA]]'s increasingly careless management practices, and to make the shuttle safer. Flights resumed with the launch of [[Space Shuttle Discovery|''Discovery'']] in September 1988.

The Soviet program with cosmonauts went well during the decade, experiencing only minor setbacks. The [[Salyut 6]] space station, launched in 1977, was replaced by [[Salyut 7]] in 1982. Then came ''[[Mir]]'' in 1986, which ended up operating for more than a decade, and was destined to be the last in the line of Soviet space stations that had begun in 1971. One of the Soviet Union's last "superprojects" was the [[Buran (spacecraft)|''Buran'' space shuttle]]; it was only used once, in 1988.

===Automobiles===
The American auto industry began in the 1980s in a thoroughly grim situation, faced with poor quality control, rising import competition, and a severe economic downturn.<ref>{{cite magazine|url= http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,924408-8,00.html |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071130033908/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,924408-8,00.html |url-status= dead |archive-date= 30 November 2007 |title=Detroit's Uphill Battle |magazine=Time |date=1980-09-08 |first1=Alexander |last1=Taylor |first2=Christopher |last2=Redman |first3=Barrett |last3=Seaman |access-date=2015-04-18}}</ref> [[Chrysler]] and [[American Motors]] (AMC) were near bankruptcy, and Ford was little better off.<ref>{{cite magazine| first1=Alexander |last1=Taylor |first2=Christopher |last2=Redman |url= http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,922223-2,00.html|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20121105153045/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,922223-2,00.html|url-status= dead|archive-date= November 5, 2012|title=Detroit's Road Is Still Rocky |magazine=Time |date=1980-12-15 |access-date=2015-04-18}}</ref> Only [[General Motors]] (GM) continued with business as usual. But the auto makers recovered with the economy by 1983, and in 1985 auto sales in the United States hit a new record. However, the Japanese were now a major presence, and would begin  manufacturing cars in the US to get around tariffs. In 1986, [[Hyundai Motor Company|Hyundai]] became the first Korean auto maker to enter the American market. In the same year, the Yugoslavian-built [[Zastava Koral|Yugo]] was brought to the US, but the car was so small and cheap, that it became the subject of jokes. It was sold up to 1991, when economic sanctions against Yugoslavia forced its withdrawal from the American market.

As the decade progressed, cars became smaller and more efficient in design. In 1983, [[Ford Motor Company|Ford]] design teams began to incorporate aerodynamic styling to decrease drag while in motion. The [[Ford Thunderbird|Thunderbird]] was one of the first cars to receive these design changes. In 1985, Ford released the [[Ford Taurus|Taurus]] with a design that was revolutionary among domestic mass market automobiles.

GM began suffering significant losses in the late 1980s, partially the result of chairman [[Roger Smith (executive)|Roger Smith]]'s restructuring attempts, and partially because of increasingly dated cars. An example were customers who increasingly purchased European luxury cars rather than [[Cadillac]]s. In 1985, GM started [[Saturn Corporation|Saturn]] (the first new American make since the Edsel), with the goal of producing high-quality import fighters. Production would not begin until 1990.

Chrysler introduced its new compact, front-wheel drive [[Chrysler K platform|K-cars]] in 1981. Under the leadership of [[Lee Iacocca]], the company turned a profit again the following year, and by 1983 paid off its government loans. A succession of models using this automobile platform followed. The most significant were the [[minivan]]s in 1984. These proved a to be popular and they would dominate the van market for more than a decade. In 1987, Chrysler purchased the Italian makes of [[Lamborghini]] and [[Maserati]]. In the same year, Chrysler bought [[American Motors Corporation|AMC]] from [[Renault]] laying to rest the last significant independent US automaker, but acquiring the hugely profitable [[Jeep]] line and continuing the [[Eagle (automobile)|Eagle]] brand until the late 1990s.<ref>{{cite news|last=Holusha |first=John |title=Chrysler is Buying American Motors; Cost is $1.5&nbsp;billion |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/03/10/business/chrysler-is-buying-american-motors-cost-is-1.5-billion.html |work=The New York Times |date=1987-03-10 |access-date=2015-04-18}}</ref>

The [[DMC DeLorean]] was the brainchild of [[John DeLorean]], a flamboyant former GM executive. Production of the gull-winged sports car began in Northern Ireland in 1981. John DeLorean was arrested in October 1982 in a sting operation where he was attempting to sell cocaine to save his struggling company. He was acquitted of all charges in 1984, but too late for the [[DeLorean Motor Company]], which closed down in 1983. The DeLorean gained renewed fame afterward as the time machine in the [[Back to the Future (series)|''Back to the Future'' film trilogy]].

The imposition of [[corporate average fuel economy]] (CAFE) fuel-mileage standards in 1979 spelled the end of big-block engines, but [[performance car]]s and [[convertible]]s reemerged in the 1980s. [[Turbocharger]]s were widely used to boost the performance of small cars, and technology from [[fuel injection]] began to take over from the widely used application of [[carburetors]] by the late 1980s. Front-wheel drive also became dominant.

The 1980s marked the decline of European brands in North America by the end of the decade. Renault, [[Citroën]], and [[Peugeot]] ceased importation by the end of the decade. [[Alfa Romeo]] would continue until 1993. [[Fiat Automobiles|Fiat]] also ceased imports to North America in the 1980s.