OPEC History, Member Nations and Technological Milestones
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The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) is an international economic organization based in Vienna. It was created in August 1960 in response to the falling price of oil, which had been agreed upon unilaterally by large foreign distribution companies. Its primary purposes are the unification and coordination of the petroleum policies of member countries and the defense of their interests as producing nations. Consumer countries often consider OPEC to be a cartel.1
OPEC was founded in Baghdad during a conference held from September 10 to September 14, 1960, at the initiative of the Government of Venezuela—represented by the Minister of Energy and Mines, Juan Pablo Pérez Alfonzo—and the Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources of Saudi Arabia, Abdullah al-Tariki. Alfonzo noted the need for an "instrument of defense of prices to avoid economic waste while oil is exhausted without the possibility of renewal."2
Member Nations
Algeria (July 2007)
Angola (January 2007)
Ecuador (1973–1993; rejoined November 2007)
Nigeria (July 1971)
United Arab Emirates (November 1967)
Libya (December 1962)
Qatar (December 1961)
Former Members
Gabon (1975–1995)
Indonesia (December 1962 – end of 2008)
Technological Milestones
Radio
In 1899, 21-year-old Guglielmo Marconi achieved wireless communication across the English Channel (50 km) using Morse code, leading to the rise of wireless telegraphy or radio. Early radiotelegraphy could not transmit the human voice because emitting electric waves could only be achieved by impulse, rather than the continuous wave required for voices or music.
Television
In 1926, John Baird presented the first television images at the Royal Institute in London. The development of television began in earnest in 1930 but took a break during World War II, as scientists were dedicated to radar and military communications.
Internet
The Internet is a decentralized set of interconnected communications networks that use the TCP/IP protocol suite, ensuring that the heterogeneous physical networks function as a single logical network worldwide. Its origins date back to 1969, when the first computer connection, known as ARPANET, was established between three universities in California and one in Utah, United States.