What D-Day Tells Us About How Tech Goes from Niche to Mass
Today is the 81st anniversary of D-Day, the Allied invasion of France that began the liberation of Western Europe. I always mark the date, but this is the first time I've been able to commemorate it so personally: Last week, I fulfilled a lifelong dream of hiking the Normandy beaches stormed by those unimaginably brave American, Canadian and British soldiers. Like most who visit, I've tried to imagine how they must have felt. Unlike most, I suspect, I also spent the walk thinking about weather forecasting.
Why? The first and most important decision of D-Day wasn't made on D-Day. It was made two nights before — based on the weather forecast. And the role it played has something to teach us about how revolutionary innovations change the world.
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