A Wireless Phenomenon

Radio Record, Volume II, Issue 8, 7 September 1928, Page 5

A Wireless Phenomenon

ACCORDING to the "Swedish Export" journal of July, Kalmar, a quiet little town in Sweden, is the seene of a wireless performance by means of a coal shovel acting as a loudspeaker that is entertaining the multitude and puzzling the experts. In the station of the local Fire Brigade a coal shovel suspended in its usual corner suddenly took upon itself to act as a loudspeaker-a fact that was only realised after the lapse of some time. At first the firemen listened with great awe to the cascades of sound and bursts of song emitted by the shovel. Now the shovel is famed throughout Sweden, having been interviewed, so to speak, by correspondents from the capital. At the visit of one of them the shovel was giving a lesson in English without, the correspondent adds, the northern accent that one would expect the shovel to have contracted from its long familiarity with jcoals from those regions of Britain. / An investigation showed the shovel to be suspended in contact with the po ver line to the local broadcasting station, but beyond that the experts are unable to explain the clear and distinct sounds emitted. Meanwhile the Kalmar firemen are proud of their shovel and basking in the unwonted notoriety of their station.

"THE British Broadcasting Corporation was constituted by Royal Charter December 31, 1926. It replaced the British Broadcasting Company, which had been formed in 1923 and consisted of some 300 manufacturers and shareholders. At least 2500 schools in different parts of Great Britain are equipped with wireless sets. QNE most important and satisfactory effects of the installation of "crystal control" at 2YA Wellington is the marked sharpening of the tuning of that station’s wave. Many residents of the outlying suburbs of Wellington report that they are now able to "cut out" the big station and get certain Australian stations while 2YA is on the air-a feat found impossible prior to the installation of "crystal control."

[tz is illegal to operate a receiving set without first taking out a license, costing 30s. a year, from the Post Office. Some people do manage to listen without a license, but it costs much more in the end. It also costs a great deal in self-respect. ECENT experiments between Canada and the United States showed normal and steady signals over water during the night while there were astounding variations over land. This difference has been interpreted as being due toa more rapid deionisation in the Heaviside layer over water than over land after sunset. Difference in ionisation is assumed to change the surface that reflects and refracts radio waves, due to vertical polarisation. While this causes fading and freaking in ordinary radio transmission, in com-

2 ee pass work it causes distorted bearings, Unless frequent checks are taken on known fixed stations, this might mean that bearings given to vessels would be several degrees in error, with possible dire consequences. Fortunately, one of the first effects of night effect is to dull or blur the minimum so that the operator has ample warning. So far as is known Henry Taylor, of Atwood, Kan., U.S.A., is the oldest fan in the world. A radio set was installed in this venerable centenarian’s home on his 108rd _ birthday. Broadcasting stations made _ special note of the unique circumstances of this birthday gift. The aged man’s family selected a five-valve neutrodyne single-control receiver as best suited to his needs because of its simplicity of operation.