Radio age research, manufacturing, communications, broadcasting, television (1941)

Brief ly Told . . "Thyristor" . . . A new type of transistor that "ap- proaches the ideal electronic switch" for high-speed switching functions in electronic computers and automatic control systems has been developed ex- perimentally by scientists of RCA, it was announced October 6 by Dr. Irving Wolff, Vice President, Research. The new device, called the "Thyris- tor," is described by Dr. Wolff as "a marked advance" over both gas tubes and existing transistor switching de- vices because of its combination of simplicity, speed and "extremely low" power requirements. The "Thyristor" was developed by an RCA Laboratories research team including C. W. Mueller, J. Hilibrand, and L. E. Barton, members of the technical staff at RCA's David Sarnoff Research Center, Princeton, N. J. Reserve Aivard . . . "Outstanding cooperation" of RCA in the nation's Military Reserve Pro- gram received recognition of the U. S. Department of Defense in Septem- ber. The Defense Department Reserve Award, including an official citation and display pennant, was presented to Theodore A. Smith, Executive Vice- President, RCA Industrial Electronic Products, by Maj. General Roger J. Browne, USAF, Commander, First Air Force, at a ceremony at Camden, N. }. The citation paid tribute to RCA per- sonnel policies which encourage par- ticipation in Reserve activities. Folsom in Europe . . . Frank M. Folsom, Chairman of the Executive Committee of the RCA Board, is in Vienna, Austria, attending the conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency as Permanent Representative of the State of Vatican City. Following the month-long con- ference, Mr. Folsom will visit RCA activities in Germany, Italy, Spain, France and England. He will return to the United States in November. Radio Cigarette Lighter . . . For easy-chair addicts who don't wish to interrupt a jazz-listening ses- sion to go to the kitchen for a match. RCA Victor Radio and "Victrola" Division has come up with a table' model radio equipped with a cigarette lighter—the Winthrop. The lighter, which is mounted in top of the cabinet, works and looks like an automobile lighter: Push it in and in a few seconds it pops out ready for action. A lighter knob and "ash sleeve" protect fingers from ac- cidental burning. The lighter takes power from the line only during the ten-second heating operation, and the assembly fuse turns off automatically in case of overheating. Mrs. Ivy Baker Priest, Treasurer of the U. S., presented a citation to John L. Burns, President of RCA, on September 11 for RCA's outstanding participa- tion in the 1957 National Savings Bond Program. Story of TV . . . A special thirteen and a half minute adaptation of the RCA documentary film—"The Story of Television"—has proved such an excellent means of telling what TV represents in America that 171 TV stations across the country put it on the air for their audiences during National Television Week in September. The film, presented by RCA and produced by the William J. Ganz Company, traces the highlights of TV progress from its inception and spectacular growth to the present de- velopment and major expansion of the color television era. Copies are being made available on a loan basis through the Institute of Visual Training, 40 E. 49th St., New York City 17. Color TV in Clubs . . . The Harvard Club of New York installed one of RCA Victor's newest color TV sets and a 24-inch black- and-white receiver for reception of the World Series and football games. Several hundred members and guests in Harvard Hall watched the Series. Among other clubs and groups view- ing the World Series on color TV sets were the Lawyers' Club of New York, the Rockefeller Center Luncheon Club and the Irving Trust Company suite at the Hotel Biltmore. 32 ELECTRONIC AGE