Gallery: A Sleek New Exhibit of the Telecom Inventions We Take for Granted

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    Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio
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    Science Museum Information Age photos by Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio--Panorama3

    *Information Age* is the newest permanent collection at London's Science Museum. It covers 200 years of telecommunications inventions, like the Soviet BESM-6 supercomputer from 1960s.
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    Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio
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    Science Museum Information Age photos by Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio--Panorama1

    The giant wooden Rugby Radio Station tuner is in the 'Broadcast' section. It was used in England in the 1920s.
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    Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio
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    Science Museum Information Age photos by Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio-DSC-6344

    The 2L0 was the BBC's first transmitter, and sent out the corporation's first radio program in 1922.
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    Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio
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    Science Museum Information Age photos by Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio--6387

    A replica of the Shabolovka radio tower is in the 'Broadcast' section of the exhibit. Built in Moscow in 1922, it was commissioned by Communist leader Vladimir Lenin. The original was often called the Eiffel Tower of Russia.
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    Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio
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    Science Museum Information Age photos by Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio--Panorama2

    To guide visitors through the exhibit, Universal Design Studio and the museum divided the artifacts into six sections. 'Exchange,' the rise of telephone networks, and 'Constellation,' a look at satellite technology, can be seen here.
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    Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio
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    Science Museum Information Age photos by Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio--Panorama4

    Behind the exhibit is an elevated wraparound walkway that gives visitors a chance to escape "gallery fatigue."
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    Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio
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    Science Museum Information Age photos by Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio--Panorama5

    The Eurostar communication satellite 3000, designed to provide Europe with communication to South America, hangs above the 'Constellation' section.
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    Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio
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    Science Museum Information Age photos by Andrew Meredith for Universal Design Studio-DSC-6350

    On the left, you can see colored cables from the 1968 'Empress PCM tandem telephone exchange’.
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