View source for Aperture Science

[[File:ApertureLogo.png|right|256px]]
'''Aperture Science''' is a scientific research company founded by [[Cave Johnson]]. [[Portal]] and [[Portal 2]] take place in Aperture Science's Enrichment Center, which is dedicated to endlessly testing the Aperture Science products and the humans that use them. 

== History ==
{{see also|Story}}
[[File:Underground trophycase newspaper.png|right|150px|thumb|Newspaper reporting the purchase of the salt mine]]
Aperture Science was founded as Aperture Fixtures in the early 1940s by Cave Johnson. Aperture Fixtures was primarily dedicated to the manufacture and distribution of shower curtains {{N}} a low-tech portal between the inside and outside of a shower {{N}} with Cave Johnson winning the "Shower Curtain Salesman of 1943" award. In 1943 the company's name was changed to "Aperture Science Innovators". While this was initially done to make their shower curtains sound more hygienic, the company's focus would indeed soon shift to actual science. Cave Johnson purchased a large, abandoned salt mine in Upper Michigan in which Aperture Science's Enrichment Center would be built; however, there was at least one alternate location in Cleveland, Ohio.<ref>[[:File:Borealis_Blueprint.png]] Blueprints of the Borealis</ref>

Throughout the late 1940s and the 1950s, Aperture Science would begin its comprehensive testing and research practices. All of this was not done legally, going by the posters telling workers to alarm if they were to see any sort of journalist, police or workplace controlant. The best possible test subjects, the likes of Olympians, astronauts and war heroes were first chosen. They were also the second largest contractor after [[hl2:Black Mesa|Black Mesa]] for the Department of Defense from 1952 to 1954. Aperture's developments in this period included [[Gels#Repulsion Gel|Repulsion Gel]], the [[Weighted Storage Cube]], the [[Heavy Duty Super-Colliding Super Button|1500 Megawatt Super Colliding Super Button]] and the [[Handheld Portal Device|Aperture Science Portable Quantum Tunneling Device]], an early and significantly larger version of the modern Portal Gun. 

In 1968, Cave Johnson attending court hearings regarding Aperture Science's involvement with the disappearances of astronauts, likely due to many of them not returning from testing.

By the 1970s, Aperture Science was financially unstable. The Olympians, astronauts and war heroes that were used as test subjects were replaced with vagrants who were paid $60 for their time. Aperture Science would continue its research and created [[Gels#Propulsion Gel|Propulsion Gel]].

In the 1980s, test participation became mandatory for all staff, raising the quality of the test subjects, but diminishing employee retention. Aperture's financial problems were severe at this time, but development continued. Moon rocks were used to create [[Gels#Conversion Gel|Conversion Gel]], an efficient portal conductor. {{Spoiler text|Cave Johnson would also be poisoned by his experiments with moon rocks and become deathly ill. As his health degraded he delegated his leadership to his assistant [[Caroline]], asking that her consciousness be placed in a computer. Testing continued with the hope that passing through portals repeatedly might somehow cure Cave Johnson of his illness}}. Aperture Science also began development of its [[GLaDOS|Genetic Lifeform and Disk Operating System]], an artificial intelligence which would be used to oversee scientific testing. 

In 1998, GLaDOS was brought online for the first time during Aperture Science's annual bring-your-daughter-to-work-day. GLaDOS instantly became self-aware and homicidal. GLaDOS flooded the enrichment center with a deadly neurotoxin, killing most of the scientists. Aperture Science was effectively shut down and placed into a permanent testing cycle by GLaDOS.

== Products ==
{{Gallery
|title=Products
|width=170
|height=100
|lines=2
|File:Portal PortalGun.png|alt1=Handheld Portal Device|[[Handheld Portal Device]].
|File:GLaDOS P2.png|alt2=GLaDOS seen in ''Portal 2''|[[GLaDOS]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
|File:Portal 2 Heavy Duty Super-Colliding Super Button.png|alt1=1500 Megawatt Super-Colliding Super Button|[[Heavy Duty Super-Colliding Super Button|1500 Megawatt Super-Colliding Super Button]]
|File:Portal2 Turret Standard.png|alt1=Turret|[[Turrets|Turret]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
|File:Portal2 StorageCube.png|alt1=Weighted Storage Cube seen in ''Portal 2''|[[Cube#Weighted Storage Cube|Weighted Storage Cube]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
|File:Companion Cube.png|alt1=Weighted Companion Cube seen in ''Portal 2''|[[Weighted Companion Cube]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
|File:Portal2 ReflectionCube.png|alt1=Discouragement Redirection Cube as seen in ''Portal 2''|[[Cube#Discouragement Redirection Cube|Discouragement Redirection Cube]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
|File:Thermal Discouragement Beam.png|alt1=Thermal Discouragement Beam as seen in ''Portal 2''|[[Thermal Discouragement Beam]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
|File:Excursion Funnel Forward.png|alt1=Excursion Funnel seen in ''Portal 2''|[[Excursion Funnel]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
|File:Panel.png|alt1=Panel seen in ''Portal 2''|[[Panels|Panel]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
|File:Crusher.png|alt1=Crushers seen in ''Portal 2''|[[Crushers]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
|File:Faith plate.png|alt1=Aerial Faith Plate seen in ''Portal 2''|[[Aerial Faith Plate]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
|File:Repulsion Gel.png|alt1=Repulsion Gel seen in ''Portal 2''|[[Gel#Repulsion Gel|Repulsion Gel]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
|File:Propulsion Gel.png|alt1=Propulsion Gel seen in ''Portal 2''|[[Gel#Propulsion Gel|Propulsion Gel]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
|File:Conversion Gel.png|alt1=Conversion Gel seen in ''Portal 2''|[[Gel#Conversion Gel|Conversion Gel]] seen in ''Portal 2''.
}}

== Staff members and associates ==
{{main|Characters}}
* [[Cave Johnson]]
* [[Caroline]]
* [[Doug Rattmann]]
* [[Greg]]
* [[Henry]]

==Trivia==
* Aperture created a ship known as the Borealis, which vanished following the use of its localised teleportation device. The Borealis is mentioned several times in the Half-Life series, and the dock it was held at can be found in Portal 2, upon which you unlock an achievement.
* The image in the newspaper seems to be a combination of [https://case.edu/ech/sites/case.edu.ech/files/styles/media_crop/public/2018-05/A03.jpg?itok=m9Pae5zv this image] and [https://www.americaeconomia.com/sites/7.americaeconomia.com/files/styles/ae_main/public/legacy_files/mineria_tunel_11.jpg?itok=Amjk4IRV this image].

== External links ==
* {{hl2wiki|Aperture Science}}
* [https://www.aperturescience.com Aperture Science website]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071030080002/http://aperturescience.com/ Old Aperture Science Website] (use 'LOGIN' Username 'cjohnson' Password 'portal' Then type 'help'). Unfortunately, this does no longer functions because Adobe Flash is no longer supported and discontinued.

== References ==
<references />

[[Category:Story]]