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Title: Signor Marconi's Magic Box: The Most Remarkable Invention of the 19th Century and the Amateur Inventor Whose Genius Sparked a Revolution by Gavin Weightman ISBN: 0-306-81275-4 Publisher: DaCapo Press Pub. Date: 14 August, 2003 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (2 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: A good look at the early 20th century
Comment: This book is easily read and handles technical issues without getting bogged down in detail. An amateur radio enthusiast would be left hungering for more on the devices, antennas, etc. that Marconi used, but those who are not familiar with the principles of radio should find this book very satisfying. Hertz, Maxwell, Heaviside, DeForest are all here but, as the author makes clear, Marconi himself had no idea about the science underlying his success but was persistent nonetheless. The author ventures into personalities and sensations of the period that will keep you moving through the chapters. Imagine projecting news headlines onto the clouds with high powered lights! Weightman will tell you about it. I had no idea that there was a successful broadcasting service by telephone in Budapest before 1900, with music and news. Threading it all together is Marconi's remarkable life of staying ahead of the pack until the development of the electron tube. You'll get a wonderful sense of the optimism, excitement and wonder of the pre-WWI period in a well told story. I closed the book amazed that all that I had read took place only 100 years, such a short time, ago.
Rating: 4
Summary: Wired
Comment: Thomas Edison, who was a man who was not easily impressed, once quipped about Guglielmo Marconi that he "delivered more than he promised." This statement demonstrates two of Marconi's most significant traits: he was modest and extremely hard working. Marconi was the first to admit that his work was based on both the theories and the inventions of others. He also acknowledged that he didn't understand the reason his own inventions worked. He believed, contrary to many of his contemporaries, that "radio" waves could travel great distances. Many other people thought the waves could not be transmitted to a receiver that was beyond the horizon line...that at longer distances the waves would travel off into outer space. Based on this belief, with no theoretical underpinning, Marconi kept things simple: he built taller transmitters and he kept making them more powerful. His goal was to transmit electrical signals in Morse Code that could be received across the Atlantic Ocean. He eventually succeeded in this, and gained worldwide fame and popularity when wireless telegraphy, after being used by ships in distress at sea, resulted in the saving of many lives. Marconi was also an astute businessman, rather than a starry eyed inventor.(He amassed a very healthy fortune, perhaps equal to $200-$250 million today.) He was an early master of public relations- for example, using wireless to report on important yacht races. Mr. Weightman doesn't ignore the less savory aspects of the inventor: Marconi's womanizing and obsession with work resulted in the termination of his first marriage. As previously mentioned, Marconi was very weak on theory. He also failed to see the commercial possibilities of radio. That was left to others, such as Lee de Forest, to develop. While Mr. Weightman is a little skimpy on biographical depth (I never quite felt I understood what made Marconi tick), he is great on interesting details...for example, he explains how wireless was used to help capture the infamous murderer Dr. Crippen, and he also tells how Orthodox Russian priests once almost destroyed Marconi equipment because they wanted to anoint it with holy water! The book is meant for the lay reader, and the scientific detail is kept to a minimum. Very enjoyable.
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Title: Empires of Light : Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and the Race to Electrify the World by Jill Jonnes ISBN: 0375507396 Publisher: Random House Pub. Date: 19 August, 2003 List Price(USD): $27.95 |
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Title: Pendulum : Leon Foucault and the Triumph of Science by Amir D. Aczel ISBN: 0743464788 Publisher: Atria Books Pub. Date: 01 August, 2003 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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Title: The Man Who Found Time: James Hutton and the Discovery of Earth's Antiquity by Jack Repcheck ISBN: 073820692X Publisher: Perseus Publishing Pub. Date: 13 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $26.00 |
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Title: Lightning Man : The Accursed Life of Samuel F. B. Morse by Kenneth Silverman ISBN: 0375401288 Publisher: Knopf Pub. Date: 21 October, 2003 List Price(USD): $35.00 |
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Title: Transatlantic : Samuel Cunard, Isambard Brunel, and the Great Atlantic Steamships by Stephen Fox ISBN: 0060195959 Publisher: HarperCollins Pub. Date: 01 July, 2003 List Price(USD): $29.95 |
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