WASHINGTON, Jan. 7 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Following is the daily "Profile America" feature from the U.S. Census Bureau:
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20090226/CENSUSLOGO)
THURSDAY, JANUARY 7: TRANSATLANTIC CALLING
Profile America -- Thursday, January 7th. Using the phone to talk to someone whenever you want to is part of our everyday life -- even if the person you're calling lives halfway around the world. Things were different on this day in 1927 -- when the first transatlantic calls were made between New York and London, using a primitive radiotelephone. The service was expensive, often interrupted by atmospheric disturbances and customers waited hours for a connection. Thirty-one calls were made that first day. Now, with fiber-optic cables and satellites, we make almost 30 million overseas calls everyday, running up a bill of more than $9 billion annually. You can find these and more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, now preparing for the 2010 Census on April 1st.
Sources: Chase's Calendar of Events 2010, p. 78
Statistical Abstract of the United States 2009, t. 1110
Profile America is produced by the Public Information Office of the U.S. Census Bureau. These daily features are available as produced segments, ready to air, on a monthly CD or on the Internet at http://www.census.gov (look under the "Newsroom" button).
SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau
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