Technologies

Google Doodle celebrates ‘father of fiber optics’ Charles K. Kao

His landmark research laid the groundwork for the internet.

In 1966, a Chinese-born electrical engineer and physicist named Charles K. Kao co-authored a proposal that would revolutionize global communications and lay the groundwork for the internet we know today.

Along with collaborator George Hockham, Kao proposed using thin glass fibers to transmit data across long distances, replacing the bulky copper wires then in use in telecommunications. Though initially rejected, his proposal would transform communications technology and the industry as a whole.

To highlight Kao’s contribution to technology, Google will honor the engineer on Thursday with a Doodle celebrating his 88th birthday. The animated Doodle depicts Kao, widely known as «the father of fiber optics,» using a green fiber laser to transmit data from one end of the Doodle to the other.

Born in Shanghai on Nov. 4, 1933, Kao studied English, French and the Chinese classics before moving to England to study electrical engineering. After earning a bachelor’s degree, Kao went to work at Standard Telecommunication Laboratories in Harlow, England, while he was working toward a doctorate in electrical engineering.

At the time, glass fibers could carry light pulses for telephone signals only 20 meters (65 feet) before nearly all the light dissipated. But Kao’s 1966 landmark paper Dielectric-Fiber Surface Waveguides for Optical Frequenciessuggested it would be possible to transmit light signals more than 100 kilometers (62 miles) across a fiber of ultrapure glass.

Kao and Hockhamnoted in their conclusion that «a fiber of glassy material» of a specific construction «represents a possible practical optical waveguide withimportant potential as a new form of communication medium.»

Four years later, inspired by Kao’s vision, a group of researchers produced the first ultrapure fiber.

Kao’s landmark research allowed the rapid expansion of broadband communications through the hundreds of millions of miles of fiber optic cable that deliver massive amounts of data around the globe in a split second. For his work, Kao would share the joint Nobel Prize in Physics in 2009.

Kao would go on to oversee implementation of fiber optic networks worldwide and focus on education in the 1980s, serving as vice chancellor of The Chinese University of Hong Kong and founding Hong Kong’s Independent Schools Foundation.

Kao died in 2018 at the age of 84.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Answers for Monday, Oct. 27

Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for Oct. 27.

Looking for the most recent Mini Crossword answer? Click here for today’s Mini Crossword hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Wordle, Strands, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Need some help with today’s Mini Crossword? I thought 8-Across was a bit of an odd one, since it was asking for a sound that has no universal spelling. If you need help, read on. And if you could use some hints and guidance for daily solving, check out our Mini Crossword tips.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: Tips and Tricks for Solving The New York Times Mini Crossword

Let’s get to those Mini Crossword clues and answers.

Mini across clues and answers

1A clue: «Soooo cute!» reactions
Answer: AWS

4A clue: ___ mode (battery-saving state)
Answer: SLEEP

6A clue: Afica’s largest capital city
Answer: CAIRO

7A clue: Bicker, bicker, bicker
Answer: ARGUE

8A clue: Close-mouthed sound of agreement
Answer: MMHMM

Mini down clues and answers

1D clue: Reason to suddenly bolt awake
Answer: ALARM

2D clue: Put on a scale
Answer: WEIGH

3D clue: kin-care product dispensed with a dropper
Answer: SERUM

4D clue: Total rip-off
Answer: SCAM

5D clue: «The Raven» or «The Road Not Taken»
Answer: POEM

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections: Sports Edition Hints and Answers for Oct. 27, #399

Here are hints and the answers for the NYT Connections: Sports Edition puzzle for Oct. 27, No. 399.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition is a tricky one. Hope you know your NBA history! If you’re struggling but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Help athletes learn.

Green group hint: Statistics.

Blue group hint: From Sin City.

Purple group hint: Not Queens, but…

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Coach.

Green group: Seen in a baseball scorebug.

Blue group: UNLV

Purple group: Home cities of the NBA’s Kings franchise, over time.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is coach. The four answers are drill, instruct, school and teach.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is seen in a baseball scorebug. The four answers are count, inning, outs and score.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is UNLV. The four answers are Las, Nevada, University and Vegas.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is home cities of the NBA’s Kings franchise, over time. The four answers are Cincinnati, Kansas City, Rochester and Sacramento.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for Oct. 27, #869

Here are some hints and the answers for the NYT Connections puzzle for Oct. 27, No. 869.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s NYT Connections puzzle has a fun mix of topics today. They’re not too tough but if you need help you’re in the right place. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including the number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Reach out from a center point.

Green group hint: Barely.

Blue group hint: Decorative eats in a drink.

Purple group hint: Not two or three, but …