Notes and Comments

Radio Record, Volume II, Issue 23, 21 December 1928, Page 30

Notes and Comments

By

Switch

EGINNERS are sometimes hard to , convinee. One informed "Switch" that his new six-valve set, although costing about £60, had failed to come up to expectations, and he asked for advice whether he should return it and claim a refund. When asked what was the specific cause for complaint, he said he was unable to bring in the Australian stations with .anything like the volume that a friend did three months ago on his five-valve set. Only after the beginner had been induced to revisit his friend’s home and ascertain fur himself that Australian reception had "gone off," was he convinced that he could not blame his own set. tHE ring-side description of the box- . ing contest between McAlister and ‘Taylor at Wellington last week, broadeast by 2YA Wellington, was a feather in Mr. Aldridge’s cap. He exhibited ' avast improvement on his former endeavours, and he rattled off his report of each blow almost as soon as it was struck. The rapid description of a =

"willing" pugilistie encounter when punches are being exchanged almost continuously, requires an inordinately quick perception and ready command of descriptive ability. Last week’s rt was the best yet heard from 2YA, URING his lecture at last week's meeting of the et eington Radio Society, Mr. C. C. K. Fear mentioned a problem in poor vocation . he eneountered at a listener’s home. He examined the set, valves, aerial, and earth, and even tried out the set at his home, and found everything O.K. during the latter test. .On returning the set to its owner’s home, Mr. Fear was surprised at its poor performance. It then occurred to Mr. Fear to examine the lightning-arrester, and discov- -_ ---

ered that it was crackeW at the back, thus permitting wet to enter it and causing a "short" to earth. PRISONERS in the New Zealand gaols have not yet indulged in secret listening-in, but, in the Melbourne gaol (Pentridge) not so long since some illicit receiving sets were discovered and seized. At the famous English prison at Wormwood Scrubbs a class of sixty prisoners regularly follows the educational talks given from the British Broadcasting Corporation’s stations. T the Wellington Rudio Society’s meeting last week two small boys exhibited a conspicuous knowledge in radio technicalities and an intelligent thirst for information from the lecturer, Mr. ©. C. K. Fear. One of the youngsters proved to be Master Wesley Chisholm, aged 18 years, of Wellington College, who was awarded as first prize a five-valve receiving set by a local radio company for the best homemade crystal ‘set-in a competition conducted by that company. Mr. Byron Brown, president of the society, complimented the boy on his. Knowledge of radio principles. ON E hears some peculiar speeches at the Wellington Radio Society’s meetings occasionally. At last week’s meeting a gentleman who occupied the

floor for over ten minutes commenced by soundly condemning the _ prograimes by 2ZYA, Wellington, and con cluded by saying he had no fault to find with them except that he would prefer to hear more frequent talks of an educational character! (THE perennial! question as to whether extreme long-distunce reception by crystal sets was due to reradiation by a valve set or to actual direct reception, was brought up by Mr. Fear, the lecturer at the recent meeting of the Wellington Radio Society. Mr. Fear cited instances of personal experience which favoured the theory that direct reception of the Australian stations with crystal sets operated in a good locality was possible. Yet he would not say that he was quite certain on the matter. though everything pointed to it having been accomplished. The Australian radio press appears to be certain that these long-distance crystal set feats are due to re-radiation by a valve set. ME. FEAR, who resides on the heights of Khandallah, just on the summit of the hills surrounding Wellington. stated at the: Wellington Radio Society’s meeting, that a neighbour and himself had both heard Sydney and Melbourne stations on crystal sets. Mr. Fear. himself, had tuned from station to station across the Tasman with his crystal se‘ during a favourable period of recept* of the Australian stations. , ON Thursday evening of last week 2YA, Wellington, put on an engaging "stunt" when with only a moment’s warning the Sydney short wave station, 2ME. was re-broadcast. The announcer at 2ME could be heard broadcasting music for a station in Berlin, and giving the names of the team selected to represent the English-

men in the second Test match in Sydney. The rebroadcast was almost perfect, and it was ali too brief. Me. MAX HOWDEN, the well-known Melbourne amateur transmitter, recently reported being unable to pick up either the American or New Zealand amateur transmitters operating on 10 metres. He suggested that "the trouble is probably somewhere between here (Melbourne) and New Zealand Broadcast listeners have noticed uf difficulty in getting good reception fro the Australian stations, evidently due to the mysterious "trouble’’ mentioned by Mr. Howden. | RADIO friend handed in the following queries the other day: (a) What is the liquid in an accumulator composed of? (b) What is the chemieal symbol? (c) What does the symbol denote? The solution is sulphuric acid diluted with distilled water. The chemical symbol is H2S04, which indicates the nature of the atoms contained therein. A molecule of sulphuric acid contains 2 atoms of hydrogen, hence H2. One atom of sulphur is shown as S, and 4 atoms of oxygen are shown as O4, WELLINGTON company has been testing out a small broadcasting outfit lately on 172 metres, using a power of 50 watts into the aerial. As many of the imported factory-built sets cannot tune below 200 metres, there was a good deal of disappointment among owners of these sets who were unable to pick up the stranger.