SRI scientists made vast improvements to the acoustically coupled modem, which had been invented elsewhere in the early 1960s. SRI’s improvements included a receiver that could detect bits of data amid the “hiss” heard over long-distance telephone connections.
In 1966, SRI patented two acoustical couplers that gave the deaf a way to communicate. The modems also allowed for the first broad-area computer network connections.
The U.S. Department of Education issues a second five-year grant to SRI to provide students with disabilities free public education programs tailored to specific needs.
SRI examined how severe weather causes closures of early childhood education program sites while overburdening others, prompting a call to recognize the importance of these critical services and increase support.
Ochoa logged nearly 1,000 hours in space, received the Presidential Medal of Freedom, and was inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame.