MediaTech: Things that Influence the Rate of Adoption of Innovations [VID] (W7-P1) Fa16

What makes an innovation spread?  What makes the rate of adoption increase?  What are the key factors according to diffusion of innovation theory?  What are the characteristics (or attributes) of an innovation that makes it quickly become adopted?  

Specifically, what are the attributes of the innovation that make it spread?

Let's first think about these attributes in the context of early radio?  Do you see the attributes mentioned in the adoption of early radio.

See from about 0:30 to about 9:00 in the video below.



Now, how do these attributes of an innovation apply to the diffusion of social media like Facebook, Twitter, etc.?

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Granville Woods: Communication Technologist (W6-P4) Fa16

Now let's add to our current discussion...

But first a little musical interlude...
Pay special attention to about 2:49-2:53 of video.

See this video, makes me think.  Rap music is an innovation?
Question to ponder.  But, now, let's return to giving Granville Woods our special attention.

In 1913...

B.J. Nolan, Tennessee patent lawyer said:

“I never knew a Negro to even suggest a new idea. Much less try to patent one. And I have dealt with them all my life. P.S. I have asked other lawyers around me for data of Negro inventions. And they take it as a joke.”

Com Technologist: Granville Woods

• 1884: Inventor of improved telephone transmitter
• 1885: Inventor of telegraphony
• 1887: Inventor of induction telegraph

35+ other patents

Why not mentioned in history books along side Edison, Bell, etc.?




Granville Woods: His story

• Sometimes called the “Black Edison”
• Born in 1856 in Australia or Ohio
• Went to work at young age
• Mainly self-educated / read anything he could find on electricity.
• Worked as fireman and then engineer on railroad.

Telephone invented in 1870s by Bell

Early 1880s, Telephone Transmitter
Woods: “My invention relates to a method of and apparatus for the transmission of articulate speech and other sounds through the medium of electricity.”

1885: Inventor of telegraphony
A combination telephone and telegraph.
What need does this meet?


1887 induction telegraph
Woods: “for the purpose of averting accidents by keeping each train informed of the whereabouts of the one immediately ahead of following it, in communicating with the stations from moving trains…”

See transduction in this process?


Granville Woods: His story

• Tried to market his inventions himself.
• Sold/Gave up rights to many of his patents to corporations like: American Bell Telephone Company, General Electric and Westinghouse.
• Died 1910 in virtual poverty.

See connections to Winston's model?

Similar story to other communication inventors?

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics): James West, the Microphone & the Signal Process (W6-P3) Fa16

The video below describes some technological inventions by African Americans.  The video mentions James West, Mark Dean and Gerald Lawson.

For our purposes here (media tech), let's give special attention to Lawson and West.

Lawson invented video game cartridges which lead to video game consoles (PlayStation, Xbox).

Now, let's especially focus on James West since his invention (the electret microphone) allows us to get back to the ideas of transduction and signal processing.

So, how does a basic microphone work?  What are the steps in the process?  Could you list them?



Now, lets breakdown that process a little further and see it in written form.
Next, go to this page and see specifically the graphic and text labeled "How a Microphone Works".



Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics): Steps in Signal Process (W6-P2) Fa16

Think of a news event being covered live by a news crew.  How does the story get from the location of the event to you watching it on TV or maybe on your mobile device?

What are the steps in signal processing?

• Step 1: Signal Generation
• Audio Signal Generation; Video Signal Generation
• Step 2: Amplification and Processing
• Audio Amplification and Processing Video Amplification and Processing
• Step 3: Signal Transmission
• Audio Transmission; Video Transmission; Satellite Transmission
• Step 4: Signal Reception
• Radio Receivers; TV Receivers
• Step 5: Storage and Retrieval
• Audio Storage; Video Storage

Step 1: Signal Generation

"Audio signals are generated mechanically, by using microphones and turntables; electro-magnetically, by using tape recorders; and digitally, by using laser optics. Television signal generation involves the electronic line-by-line scanning of an image. An electron beam scans each element of a picture, and the image is then retraced in the TV receiver."


Step 2: Amplification and Processing

"Audio and video signals are amplified and mixed by using audio consoles and video switchers. Today’s digital technology enables sophisticated signal processing and a variety of special effects."


Step 3: Signal Transmission

"Radio waves occupy a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. AM radio channels are classified into clear, regional, and local channels. FM stations are classified according to power and antenna height. The wide bandwidth of an FM channel allows for stereo broadcasting and other nonbroadcast services. There are two types of digital radio: satellite-based and in-band, on-channel."


Step 4: Signal Reception

"Radio receivers pull in AM, FM, and other signals, in monaural or stereo. New digital multiband receivers are becoming more prevalent. In TV, large and small-screen receivers have attained record sales in recent years, abetted by new digital capabilities and "smart" remote control devices."

Technology cluster? Relationship to adoption?


Step 5: Storage and Retrieval

"New technology is reshaping audio and video storage and retrieval. Phonograph records, compact discs, and videotapes are being supplemented and may ultimately be replaced by digital storage media, such as recordable CDs, digital versatile disks (DVDs), and high-capacity disk drives on computers. A comparatively new phenomenon, audio and video streaming, permits radio and TV stations to send their complex signals onto the Internet."



Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics) (W6-P1) Fa16

Basic Principles/Science of Media Technology

• "Broadcasting, cable, and new media make use of facsimile technology, reproducing sound and sight in other forms. The better the correspondence between the facsimile and the original, the higher the fidelity."
• Transduction is the process of "changing energy from one form to another; it is at the heart of audio and video technology. Transduction can be analog—the transformed energy resembles the original—or digital—the original is transformed into a series of numbers."  Examples of transduction include energy going from physical energy to electrical, from light to electrical and from electrical to electromagnetic (radio waves).

At what point or points in signal processing does transduction occur for traditional (over-the-air) radio?




Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

HistMedia: Radio Technologist: de Forest, Armstrong & Sarnoff (W11-P2) Fa15

We continue with our coverage of early communication technologists.  We now turn specifically to radio technologists.

Filmmaker, Ken Burns, told the story of radio in his documentary "Empire of the Air."  Notice the story is not as much about the technology as it is about the people (the innovators).

In the documentary, Burns highlights the lives and work of Lee de Forest, Edwin Armstrong and David Sarnoff.  (Note: We have previously covered de Forest.)

Below is a short YouTube clip on de Forest's audion.

Note: PBS provides a good, but incomplete, timeline for the documentary (see only the "Empire" timeline).



Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

HistMedia: Communication Technologist: Granville Woods (W11-P1) Fa15

We are taking a strong biographical approach to our study of media history.  We have spent time with media scholars and even some pre-paradigmatic scholars relevant to communication study.

For now, we are going to shift our focus from media scholars to media technologists (inventors, etc.).

First, we give our attention to Granville Woods.

Why not mentioned in history books alongside Edison, Bell, etc.?

Because of attitudes like these...
In 1913...  B.J. Nolan, Tennessee patent lawyer said:

“I never knew a Negro to even suggest a new idea. Much less try to patent one. And I have dealt with them all my life. P.S. I have asked other lawyers around me for data of Negro inventions. And they take it as a joke.”

Granville Woods: His story

• Sometimes called the “Black Edison”
• Born in 1856 in Australia or Ohio
• Went to work at young age
• Mainly self-educated / read anything he could find on electricity.
• Worked as fireman and then engineer on railroad.

Telephone invented in 1870s by Bell

Early 1880s, Telephone Transmitter
Woods: “My invention relates to a method of and apparatus for the transmission of articulate speech and other sounds through the medium of electricity.”

1885: Inventor of telegraphony
A combination telephone and telegraph.

1887 induction telegraph
Woods: “for the purpose of averting accidents by keeping each train informed of the whereabouts of the one immediately ahead of following it, in communicating with the stations from moving trains…”

Granville Woods: His story

• Tried to market his inventions himself.
• Sold/Gave up rights to many of his patents to corporations like: American Bell Telephone Company, General Electric and Westinghouse.
• Died 1910 in virtual poverty.

35+ other patents

Why not mentioned in history books along side Edison, Bell, etc.?


Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Attributes that Influence Adoption of Innovations [VID] (W7-P1) Fa15

What makes an innovation spread?  What makes the rate of adoption increase?  What are the key factors according to diffusion of innovation theory?  What are the characteristics (or attributes) of an innovation that makes it quickly become adopted?  

Specifically, what are the attributes of the innovation that make it spread?

Let's first think about these attributes in the context of early radio?  Do you see the attributes mentioned in the adoption of early radio.

See from about 0:30 to about 9:00 in the video below.



Now, how do these attributes of an innovation apply to the diffusion of social media like Facebook, Twitter, etc.?



Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Granville Woods: Communication Technologist (W6-P3) Fa15

In 1913...

B.J. Nolan, Tennessee patent lawyer said:

“I never knew a Negro to even suggest a new idea. Much less try to patent one. And I have dealt with them all my life. P.S. I have asked other lawyers around me for data of Negro inventions. And they take it as a joke.”

Com Technologist: Granville Woods

• 1884: Inventor of improved telephone transmitter
• 1885: Inventor of telegraphony
• 1887: Inventor of induction telegraph

35+ other patents

Why not mentioned in history books along side Edison, Bell, etc.?




Granville Woods: His story

• Sometimes called the “Black Edison”
• Born in 1856 in Australia or Ohio
• Went to work at young age
• Mainly self-educated / read anything he could find on electricity.
• Worked as fireman and then engineer on railroad.

Telephone invented in 1870s by Bell

Early 1880s, Telephone Transmitter
Woods: “My invention relates to a method of and apparatus for the transmission of articulate speech and other sounds through the medium of electricity.”

1885: Inventor of telegraphony
A combination telephone and telegraph.
What need does this meet?


1887 induction telegraph
Woods: “for the purpose of averting accidents by keeping each train informed of the whereabouts of the one immediately ahead of following it, in communicating with the stations from moving trains…”

See transduction in this process?


Granville Woods: His story

• Tried to market his inventions himself.
• Sold/Gave up rights to many of his patents to corporations like: American Bell Telephone Company, General Electric and Westinghouse.
• Died 1910 in virtual poverty.

See connections to Winston's model?
Similar story to other communication inventors?

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics): Steps in Signal Process (W6-P2) Fa15

Think of a news event being covered live by a news crew.  How does the story get from the location of the event to you watching it on TV or maybe on your mobile device?

What are the steps in signal processing?

• Step 1: Signal Generation
• Audio Signal Generation; Video Signal Generation
• Step 2: Amplification and Processing
• Audio Amplification and Processing Video Amplification and Processing
• Step 3: Signal Transmission
• Audio Transmission; Video Transmission; Satellite Transmission
• Step 4: Signal Reception
• Radio Receivers; TV Receivers
• Step 5: Storage and Retrieval
• Audio Storage; Video Storage

Step 1: Signal Generation

"Audio signals are generated mechanically, by using microphones and turntables; electro-magnetically, by using tape recorders; and digitally, by using laser optics. Television signal generation involves the electronic line-by-line scanning of an image. An electron beam scans each element of a picture, and the image is then retraced in the TV receiver."


Step 2: Amplification and Processing

"Audio and video signals are amplified and mixed by using audio consoles and video switchers. Today’s digital technology enables sophisticated signal processing and a variety of special effects."


Step 3: Signal Transmission

"Radio waves occupy a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. AM radio channels are classified into clear, regional, and local channels. FM stations are classified according to power and antenna height. The wide bandwidth of an FM channel allows for stereo broadcasting and other nonbroadcast services. There are two types of digital radio: satellite-based and in-band, on-channel."


Step 4: Signal Reception

"Radio receivers pull in AM, FM, and other signals, in monaural or stereo. New digital multiband receivers are becoming more prevalent. In TV, large and small-screen receivers have attained record sales in recent years, abetted by new digital capabilities and "smart" remote control devices."

Technology cluster? Relationship to adoption?


Step 5: Storage and Retrieval

"New technology is reshaping audio and video storage and retrieval. Phonograph records, compact discs, and videotapes are being supplemented and may ultimately be replaced by digital storage media, such as recordable CDs, digital versatile disks (DVDs), and high-capacity disk drives on computers. A comparatively new phenomenon, audio and video streaming, permits radio and TV stations to send their complex signals onto the Internet."

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics) (W6-P1) Fa15

Basic Principles/Science of Media Technology

• "Broadcasting, cable, and new media make use of facsimile technology, reproducing sound and sight in other forms. The better the correspondence between the facsimile and the original, the higher the fidelity."
• Transduction is the process of "changing energy from one form to another; it is at the heart of audio and video technology. Transduction can be analog—the transformed energy resembles the original—or digital—the original is transformed into a series of numbers."  Examples of transduction include energy going from physical energy to electrical, from light to electrical and from electrical to electromagnetic (radio waves).

At what point or points in signal processing does transduction occur for traditional (over-the-air) radio?




Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Granville Woods: Communication Technologist (U4-P3) Fa14

In 1913...

B.J. Nolan, Tennessee patent lawyer said:

“I never knew a Negro to even suggest a new idea. Much less try to patent one. And I have dealt with them all my life. P.S. I have asked other lawyers around me for data of Negro inventions. And they take it as a joke.”

Com Technologist: Granville Woods

• 1884: Inventor of improved telephone transmitter
• 1885: Inventor of telegraphony
• 1887: Inventor of induction telegraph

35+ other patents

Why not mentioned in history books along side Edison, Bell, etc.?




Granville Woods: His story

• Sometimes called the “Black Edison”
• Born in 1856 in Australia or Ohio
• Went to work at young age
• Mainly self-educated / read anything he could find on electricity.
• Worked as fireman and then engineer on railroad.

Telephone invented in 1870s by Bell

Early 1880s, Telephone Transmitter
Woods: “My invention relates to a method of and apparatus for the transmission of articulate speech and other sounds through the medium of electricity.”

1885: Inventor of telegraphony
A combination telephone and telegraph.
What need does this meet?


1887 induction telegraph
Woods: “for the purpose of averting accidents by keeping each train informed of the whereabouts of the one immediately ahead of following it, in communicating with the stations from moving trains…”

See transduction in this process?


Granville Woods: His story

• Tried to market his inventions himself.
• Sold/Gave up rights to many of his patents to corporations like: American Bell Telephone Company, General Electric and Westinghouse.
• Died 1910 in virtual poverty.

See connections to Winston's model?
Similar story to other communication inventors?

Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics): Steps in Signal Process (U4-P2) Fa14

Think of a news event being covered live by a news crew.  How does the story get from the location of the event to you watching it on TV or maybe on your mobile device?

What are the steps in signal processing?

• Step 1: Signal Generation
• Audio Signal Generation; Video Signal Generation
• Step 2: Amplification and Processing
• Audio Amplification and Processing Video Amplification and Processing
• Step 3: Signal Transmission
• Audio Transmission; Video Transmission; Satellite Transmission
• Step 4: Signal Reception
• Radio Receivers; TV Receivers
• Step 5: Storage and Retrieval
• Audio Storage; Video Storage

Step 1: Signal Generation

"Audio signals are generated mechanically, by using microphones and turntables; electro-magnetically, by using tape recorders; and digitally, by using laser optics. Television signal generation involves the electronic line-by-line scanning of an image. An electron beam scans each element of a picture, and the image is then retraced in the TV receiver."


Step 2: Amplification and Processing

"Audio and video signals are amplified and mixed by using audio consoles and video switchers. Today’s digital technology enables sophisticated signal processing and a variety of special effects."


Step 3: Signal Transmission

"Radio waves occupy a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. AM radio channels are classified into clear, regional, and local channels. FM stations are classified according to power and antenna height. The wide bandwidth of an FM channel allows for stereo broadcasting and other nonbroadcast services. There are two types of digital radio: satellite-based and in-band, on-channel."


Step 4: Signal Reception

"Radio receivers pull in AM, FM, and other signals, in monaural or stereo. New digital multiband receivers are becoming more prevalent. In TV, large and small-screen receivers have attained record sales in recent years, abetted by new digital capabilities and "smart" remote control devices."

Technology cluster? Relationship to adoption?


Step 5: Storage and Retrieval

"New technology is reshaping audio and video storage and retrieval. Phonograph records, compact discs, and videotapes are being supplemented and may ultimately be replaced by digital storage media, such as recordable CDs, digital versatile disks (DVDs), and high-capacity disk drives on computers. A comparatively new phenomenon, audio and video streaming, permits radio and TV stations to send their complex signals onto the Internet."


Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics) (U4-P1) Fa14

Basic Principles/Science of Media Technology

• "Broadcasting, cable, and new media make use of facsimile technology, reproducing sound and sight in other forms. The better the correspondence between the facsimile and the original, the higher the fidelity."
• Transduction is the process of "changing energy from one form to another; it is at the heart of audio and video technology. Transduction can be analog—the transformed energy resembles the original—or digital—the original is transformed into a series of numbers."  Examples of transduction include energy going from physical energy to electrical, from light to electrical and from electrical to electromagnetic (radio waves).

At what point or points in signal processing does transduction occur for traditional (over-the-air) radio?




Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Granville Woods: Communication Technologist (U4-P3) Fa13

In 1913...

B.J. Nolan, Tennessee patent lawyer said:

“I never knew a Negro to even suggest a new idea. Much less try to patent one. And I have dealt with them all my life. P.S. I have asked other lawyers around me for data of Negro inventions. And they take it as a joke.”

Com Technologist: Granville Woods

• 1884: Inventor of improved telephone transmitter
• 1885: Inventor of telegraphony
• 1887: Inventor of induction telegraph

35+ other patents

Why not mentioned in history books along side Edison, Bell, etc.?




Granville Woods: His story

• Sometimes called the “Black Edison”
• Born in 1856 in Australia or Ohio
• Went to work at young age
• Mainly self-educated / read anything he could find on electricity.
• Worked as fireman and then engineer on railroad.

Telephone invented in 1870s by Bell

Early 1880s, Telephone Transmitter
Woods: “My invention relates to a method of and apparatus for the transmission of articulate speech and other sounds through the medium of electricity.”

1885: Inventor of telegraphony
A combination telephone and telegraph.
What need does this meet?


1887 induction telegraph
Woods: “for the purpose of averting accidents by keeping each train informed of the whereabouts of the one immediately ahead of following it, in communicating with the stations from moving trains…”

See transduction in this process?


Granville Woods: His story

• Tried to market his inventions himself.
• Sold/Gave up rights to many of his patents to corporations like: American Bell Telephone Company, General Electric and Westinghouse.
• Died 1910 in virtual poverty.

See connections to Winston's model?
Similar story to other communication inventors?

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics): Steps in Signal Process (U4-P2) Fa13

What are the steps in signal processing?

• Step 1: Signal Generation
• Audio Signal Generation; Video Signal Generation
• Step 2: Amplification and Processing
• Audio Amplification and Processing Video Amplification and Processing
• Step 3: Signal Transmission
• Audio Transmission; Video Transmission; Satellite Transmission
• Step 4: Signal Reception
• Radio Receivers; TV Receivers
• Step 5: Storage and Retrieval
• Audio Storage; Video Storage

Step 1: Signal Generation

"Audio signals are generated mechanically, by using microphones and turntables; electro-magnetically, by using tape recorders; and digitally, by using laser optics. Television signal generation involves the electronic line-by-line scanning of an image. An electron beam scans each element of a picture, and the image is then retraced in the TV receiver."


Step 2: Amplification and Processing

"Audio and video signals are amplified and mixed by using audio consoles and video switchers. Today’s digital technology enables sophisticated signal processing and a variety of special effects."


Step 3: Signal Transmission

"Radio waves occupy a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. AM radio channels are classified into clear, regional, and local channels. FM stations are classified according to power and antenna height. The wide bandwidth of an FM channel allows for stereo broadcasting and other nonbroadcast services. There are two types of digital radio: satellite-based and in-band, on-channel."


Step 4: Signal Reception

"Radio receivers pull in AM, FM, and other signals, in monaural or stereo. New digital multiband receivers are becoming more prevalent. In TV, large and small-screen receivers have attained record sales in recent years, abetted by new digital capabilities and "smart" remote control devices."

Technology cluster? Relationship to adoption?


Step 5: Storage and Retrieval

"New technology is reshaping audio and video storage and retrieval. Phonograph records, compact discs, and videotapes are being supplemented and may ultimately be replaced by digital storage media, such as recordable CDs, digital versatile disks (DVDs), and high-capacity disk drives on computers. A comparatively new phenomenon, audio and video streaming, permits radio and TV stations to send their complex signals onto the Internet."




Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics) (U4-P1) Fa13

Basic Principles/Science of Media Technology

• "Broadcasting, cable, and new media make use of facsimile technology, reproducing sound and sight in other forms. The better the correspondence between the facsimile and the original, the higher the fidelity."
• Transduction is the process of "changing energy from one form to another; it is at the heart of audio and video technology. Transduction can be analog—the transformed energy resembles the original—or digital—the original is transformed into a series of numbers."

At what point or points in signal processing does transduction occur for traditional (over-the-air) radio?



Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Granville Woods: Communication Technologist (U4-P3) fa12

In 1913...

B.J. Nolan, Tennessee patent lawyer said:

“I never knew a Negro to even suggest a new idea. Much less try to patent one. And I have dealt with them all my life. P.S. I have asked other lawyers around me for data of Negro inventions. And they take it as a joke.”

Com Technologist: Granville Woods

• 1884: Inventor of improved telephone transmitter
• 1885: Inventor of telegraphony
• 1887: Inventor of induction telegraph

35+ other patents

Why not mentioned in history books along side Edison, Bell, etc.?




Granville Woods: His story

• Sometimes called the “Black Edison”
• Born in 1856 in Australia or Ohio
• Went to work at young age
• Mainly self-educated / read anything he could find on electricity.
• Worked as fireman and then engineer on railroad.

Early 1880s, Telephone Transmitter
Woods: “My invention relates to a method of and apparatus for the transmission of articulate speech and other sounds through the medium of electricity.”

Telephone invented in 1870s

1885: Inventor of telegraphony
A combination telephone and telegraph.
What need does this meet?



1887 induction telegraph
Woods: “for the purpose of averting accidents by keeping each train informed of the whereabouts of the one immediately ahead of following it, in communicating with the stations from moving trains…”

Granville Woods: His story

• Tried to market his inventions himself.
• Sold/Gave up rights to many of his patents to corporations like: American Bell Telephone Company, General Electric and Westinghouse.
• Died 1910 in virtual poverty.

See connections to Winston's model?



Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics): Steps in Signal Process (U4-P2) fa12

What are the steps in signal processing?

• Step 1: Signal Generation
• Audio Signal Generation; Video Signal Generation
• Step 2: Amplification and Processing
• Audio Amplification and Processing Video Amplification and Processing
• Step 3: Signal Transmission
• Audio Transmission; Video Transmission; Satellite Transmission
• Step 4: Signal Reception
• Radio Receivers; TV Receivers
• Step 5: Storage and Retrieval
• Audio Storage; Video Storage

Step 1: Signal Generation

"Audio signals are generated mechanically, by using microphones and turntables; electro-magnetically, by using tape recorders; and digitally, by using laser optics. Television signal generation involves the electronic line-by-line scanning of an image. An electron beam scans each element of a picture, and the image is then retraced in the TV receiver."


Step 2: Amplification and Processing

"Audio and video signals are amplified and mixed by using audio consoles and video switchers. Today’s digital technology enables sophisticated signal processing and a variety of special effects."


Step 3: Signal Transmission

"Radio waves occupy a portion of the electromagnetic spectrum. AM radio channels are classified into clear, regional, and local channels. FM stations are classified according to power and antenna height. The wide bandwidth of an FM channel allows for stereo broadcasting and other nonbroadcast services. There are two types of digital radio: satellite-based and in-band, on-channel."


Step 4: Signal Reception

"Radio receivers pull in AM, FM, and other signals, in monaural or stereo. New digital multiband receivers are becoming more prevalent. In TV, large and small-screen receivers have attained record sales in recent years, abetted by new digital capabilities and "smart" remote control devices."

Technology cluster? Relationship to adoption?


Step 5: Storage and Retrieval

"New technology is reshaping audio and video storage and retrieval. Phonograph records, compact discs, and videotapes are being supplemented and may ultimately be replaced by digital storage media, such as recordable CDs, digital versatile disks (DVDs), and high-capacity disk drives on computers. A comparatively new phenomenon, audio and video streaming, permits radio and TV stations to send their complex signals onto the Internet."




Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.

MediaTech: Audio/Video Tech (Basics) (U4-P1) fa12

Basic Principles/Science of Media Technology

• "Broadcasting, cable, and new media make use of facsimile technology, reproducing sound and sight in other forms. The better the correspondence between the facsimile and the original, the higher the fidelity."
• Transduction is the process of "changing energy from one form to another; it is at the heart of audio and video technology. Transduction can be analog—the transformed energy resembles the original—or digital—the original is transformed into a series of numbers."

At what point or points in signal processing does transduction occur for traditional (over-the-air) radio?



Share this post with others. See the Twitter, Facebook and other buttons below.
Please follow, add, friend or subscribe to help support this blog.
See more about me at my web site WilliamHartPhD.com.