The Radio
The radio's fame is thanks in large part to changes, tweaks, and improvements to function and design through innovation. But where did it start?
The radio's origins begin with James Clerk Maxwell, who in 1873 showed mathematical proof that electromagnetic waves could travel through air. In 1888, Heinrich Rudolf Hertz was able to conclusively prove Maxwell's theory of electromagnetism through an experiment. Over several years beginning in 1894, the Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi (pictured at right) built the first complete, successful wireless telegraphy system based on airborne Hertzian waves, or radio transmission.
Inventor Nikola Tesla began developing his own system based off of Hertz' and Maxwell's ideas. Tesla concluded that Hertz had not demonstrated radio transmission, developed a system based on what he thought was the primary conductor (the Earth). In 1893, in St. Louis, Missouri at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, Tesla proposed that his system could communicate information.
In 1896, Marconi was awarded British patent 12039, 'Improvements in transmitting electrical impulses and signals and in apparatus there-for,' the first ever patent on a Hertzian wave-based wireless telegraphic system. In 1897, Marconi established a radio station on the Isle of Wright, England. He would go on to win the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1909 and be extremely successful in commercializing his invention.
Inventor Nikola Tesla began developing his own system based off of Hertz' and Maxwell's ideas. Tesla concluded that Hertz had not demonstrated radio transmission, developed a system based on what he thought was the primary conductor (the Earth). In 1893, in St. Louis, Missouri at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, Tesla proposed that his system could communicate information.
In 1896, Marconi was awarded British patent 12039, 'Improvements in transmitting electrical impulses and signals and in apparatus there-for,' the first ever patent on a Hertzian wave-based wireless telegraphic system. In 1897, Marconi established a radio station on the Isle of Wright, England. He would go on to win the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1909 and be extremely successful in commercializing his invention.
In 1900, Brazilian priest Roberto Landell de Moura wirelessly transmitted the human voice for the first time. He conducted the experiment publicly on June third, 1900 before journalists and the General Consul of Great Britain, C.P. Lupton, in São Paulo, Brazil. One year following the experiment he received his first patent from the Brazilian government, described as "equipment for the purpose of phonetic transmissions through space, land and water elements at a distance with or without the use of wires." Knowing that his invention could hold serious value, de Moura left Brazil with intentions to patent his device in Washington, D.C. Three patents were awarded to him; "The Wave Transmitter," a precursor to today's radio transceiver, as well as "The Wireless Telephone" and "The Wireless Telegraph."
In June of 1912, Marconi presented the world's first purpose-built radio factory in Chelmsford, England. This was the first transmission of an AM (amplitude modulation) radio. The first radio news broadcast aired August thirty-first, 1920 in Detroit, Michigan, which exists today as an all-news station named WWJ.
Early AM stations saw regular usage in aviation near the beginning of the twentieth century. This continued until the 1960s, when VOR systems became more widespread. In the 1930s, single sideband and frequency modulation were engineered by amateur radio operators.
Radio was used to transmit pictures as early as the 1920s. Commercial television transmissions started in the 1940s, primarily in North America and Europe.
In June of 1912, Marconi presented the world's first purpose-built radio factory in Chelmsford, England. This was the first transmission of an AM (amplitude modulation) radio. The first radio news broadcast aired August thirty-first, 1920 in Detroit, Michigan, which exists today as an all-news station named WWJ.
Early AM stations saw regular usage in aviation near the beginning of the twentieth century. This continued until the 1960s, when VOR systems became more widespread. In the 1930s, single sideband and frequency modulation were engineered by amateur radio operators.
Radio was used to transmit pictures as early as the 1920s. Commercial television transmissions started in the 1940s, primarily in North America and Europe.
Throughout the 1940s and 50s, radio continued to develop and change, becoming a large part of daily life for many.