Editing Tennis for Two (section)

==Development==
[[File:Tennis for Two - The Original Video Game.webm|right|thumb|150px|Reproduced version of the game built at [[Brookhaven National Laboratory|Brookhaven]] for the game's 50th anniversary<ref name="25th"/>]]
In 1958, American physicist [[William Higinbotham]] worked in the [[Brookhaven National Laboratory]] in [[Upton, New York]], as the head of the instrumentation division. Higinbotham had a bachelor's degree in physics from [[Williams College]], and had previously worked as a technician in the physics department at [[Cornell University]] while unsuccessfully pursuing a Ph.D. there. He served as the head of the electronics division of the [[Manhattan Project]] from 1943 to 1945, and began working at Brookhaven in 1947, which focused on researching peaceful uses of atomic power.<ref name="Replay50s"/><ref name="TCW3942"/> Once a year, the government research facility held an exhibition for the public, with one day each for high school students, college students, and the general public. The exhibition largely consisted of tours and static displays, with some attempts at making displays with "action", so for the 1958 exhibition Higinbotham decided to make an interactive display to entertain the visitors.<ref name="Replay50s"/><ref name="TCW3942"/><ref name="begin@brookhaven"/> While reading the instruction manual for one of Brookhaven's computers, a Donner Model 30 [[analog computer]], he learned that the computer could calculate ballistic missile trajectories or a [[bouncing ball]] with wind resistance, and he decided to use this ability to form the foundation of a game.<ref name="turn50"/><ref name="Donner"/> He later recalled his intentions were that "it might liven up the place to have a game that people could play, and which could convey the message that our scientific endeavors have relevance for society."<ref name="pioneer"/>

[[File:Tennis for Two - Modern recreation.jpg|thumb|150px|Modern recreation of the controller]]
Higinbotham designed a game that used an [[oscilloscope]] to display the path of a simulated ball on a tennis court viewed from the side. The attached computer calculated the path of the ball and reversed its path when it hit the ground. The game also simulated the ball hitting the net if it did not achieve a high enough arc as well as changes in velocity due to [[drag (physics)|drag]] from air resistance.<ref name="pioneer"/> Two aluminum controllers were attached to the computer, each consisting of a button and a knob. Pressing the button hit the ball, and turning a knob controlled the angle of the shot.<ref name="begin@brookhaven"/><ref name="anatomy"/> Originally, Higinbotham considered having a second knob to control the velocity of the shot, but decided it would make the controller too complicated.<ref name="tennis"/> The device was designed in a few hours and was assembled over three weeks with the help of technician Robert V. Dvorak.<ref name="pioneer"/> While most of the circuitry was based on [[vacuum tube]]s and [[relay]]s, the circuits to display the graphics on the oscilloscope used [[transistor]]s, then beginning to replace vacuum tubes in the [[electronics industry]].<ref name="TCW3942"/> Excluding the oscilloscope and controller, the game's circuitry approximately took up the space of a microwave oven.<ref name="anatomy" />
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