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Queen Elizabeth II was born 90 years ago today, April 21, 1926. In honor of Her Royal Highness’ birthday, we put together this small gallery of technology that has been invented during her lifetime.

The cover of Popular Science, November 1981

Personal Computers

If you’re reading this, you’re on some kind of computer, whether it’s a desktop, laptop, or mobile one. The Altair 8800, widely-recognized as the first personal computer, was invented in 1975 by Henry Edward Roberts. It had no screen or keyboard. Seen here, on the cover of Popular Science’s November 1981 issue, are slightly more advanced versions from that first one.
Sliced bread

Sliced Bread

The automatic bread-slicing machine was first used on July 7th, 1928, two years after the Queen was born. It was invented by a man named Otto Frederick Rohwedder.
Avalon Casino Movie Theater

Talkies

Or as we call them today, movies. Though the technology that synchronized sound and film was developed during the 1910s and 1920s, the first time it was revealed to the public was on August 6, 1926. A year later, the first major motion picture to use the technology, The Jazz Singer, premiered on October 6, 1927.
The cover of Popular Science, July 1973

Cell Phones

The “take-along telephone,” as we called it in our July 1973 cover, was invented by Motorola earlier that year. We boasted in the cover story that, pending FCC approval, they could be used without a telephone operator by 1976.
Sputnik 1

Artificial satellites

We very rarely think of satellites as a big deal these days. They circle the Earth and allow us to surf the web, make phone calls, watch television, and more. But it was a very big deal when the USSR launched the first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1 (seen above), into orbit on October 4, 1957.
Atari Video Games

Video Games

The first video game was not Pong, but a game called “Tennis for Two.” It was invented at the Brookhaven National Laboratory in 1958.
Nuclear weapons test, 1952

Nuclear Weapons

Albert Einstein and fellow physicist Leo Szilard wrote a letter to President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1939, fearing Hitler was developing an atomic bomb and urging Roosevelt to create one first. In response, Roosevelt started “The Manhattan Project”, the code-name for the development of the nuclear weapon, which was first tested on July 16, 1945 in New Mexico.
F8 2016

Facebook

Though the Queen doesn’t have a public page on Facebook, the British Monarchy’s official Facebook page has over 2.7 million likes.
Electric Guitar

Electric Guitars

The first electric guitar was invented by Charles Beauchamp and Adolph Rickenbacker in 1931.
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