Radio mirror (Jan-Oct 1923)

July 7, 1923 RADIO DIGEST MAN-MADE STORMS "OLD STUFF"— TESLA SAYS HE MANUFACTURED LIGHTNING FIRST Inventor Discounts Value of Recent Sensational G. E. Experiment By F. J. Andrews BOSTON, MASS. — Much Interest was incited in manufactured lightning recently, when engineers of the General Electric Company produced artificial lightning in the laboratories of the General Electric Works at Pittsfield, Mass., but Nikola when told of the experiment, said that the manufacture of lightning is nothing new, lie himself having succeeded in producing lightning discharges over a hundred feet long twenty-three years ago. The G. E. engineers constructed a miniature village, including a steepled church, and in the course of the exhibit made the lightning strike the steeple of the church, demolishing it. They also produced rain from manufactured clouds. "Old Staff," Says Tesla "When the average man hears of a manufactured thunderstorm he is naturally dumfounded," Tesla said. "What he doesn't realize is that the village struck by the artificial bolt was only a tiny model, that such experiments are not at all new, and that there is not any prospect of their being of any particular utility. I understand that electrical discharges obtained were fifteen feet long under a pressure of 2.000.000 volts. "I might also point out that electrical effects such as are here considered growin intensity with the square of the pressure. Thus the discharges I produced were eighty-one times stronger than those described. I communicated the results to the scientific world at the time and they were widely commented upon." PHONE WIRES BREAK; AIR COMES TO RESCUE Radio Proves Superiority Over Lines in Canadian Storm TORONTO. — Radio communication is destined to play a vitally important part in maintenance of continuity of service on high tension power transmission lines in the future, in the opinion of operating officials of the Toronto Hydro Power Company. This newest form of communication has already been successfully used by the company in quickly locating "trouble" on its lines, and it has p-roved greatly superior to wire telephone methods used previously. On a recent report following a severe snowstorm appeared this note: "Bronte — Tower 46, wires number 4 and 6 down — time 2.50 A. M." Beneath the message was the following notation: "Bronte — 46 — 4 and 6 O. K. — time 3.10 A. M." Behind this prosaic statement is hidden something which is of decided interest to the public and to power companies. When these two wires snapped beneath a weight of -snow and accumulated ice, and under the pressure of wind the telephone wires also snapped and communication through that source was eliminated. The operator at the Bronte service station acted quickly and within twenty minutes the service was continued. Wire telephone communication was not re-established until a half hour later. Beauty Exercises by Radio COLUMBUS, OHIO. — Physical education by Radio is the latest addition in Columbus broadcasting circles. The flabby, skinny and over or under-developed specimens of humanity, or those who merely wish to take some wholesome exercise, now hear plenty of advice when WPAL of the Superior Radio & Telephone Equipment Company broadcast its lessons in instructive and constructive exercises. ETHER TAKES HUMAN VOICE TO DEAF MUTE HONOLULU, T. H. — The sensations of a man, born a deaf mute, who heard a human voice distinctly for the first time by means of Radio, wrro told by Fred W. Baars, who heard a Radio program recently. Baars is 55 years old. "Always before the night I heard the Radio I had heard only a vague roar," he wrote. ADD SUMMER SIGNS: HAY FEVER CAUTIONS WASHINGTON, D. O— Signs of summer are seen in the recent broadcasts from Station NAA by the public health service on "Hay Fever and Weeds." NAA will not send out band music again until the fall and the bulletins and other broadcasts from the department of labor will not be resumed until December. PEGGY'S DEBUT AS A RADIOPHAN Movie fans in general are Radiophans and "Baby Peggy,' is not to be outdone by her elders, so it seems the well-known little movie vamp. Digest Photo Brazil Firm to Receivers BUENOS AIRES. — The largest manufacturer of Radio equipment in Argentine has applied for receivership. Its financial difficulties are said to be directly due to intense competition that exists in the Argentine market, which has resulted in considerable price cutting. Recruit Reserves by Air CHICAGO. — Recruiting by Radio has recently accomplished marvelous results for the Illinois Naval Reserve. The Zenith-Edgewater Beach hotel station, WJAZ, has broadcast several talks by Capt. E. A. Evers, commandant of the reserve. AIRPHONE NEW FEAR IN OUTLAW WORLD LOS ANGELES COPS' AUTOS RADIO-EQUIPPED Chief Flashes Orders to Motor Squads; "Apprehension of Crooks Now Matter of Minutes" By Strachan McMillan LOS ANGELES. — "Beware of the Radio," may soon be the "pass-word" among the outlaws in crookland who desire to escape the net of justice, if the experiments recently conducted by the Los Angeles police department prove to be successful. The Radio will shortly become the bitterest enemy of the criminal and his sure nemesis. According to members of the police department, if the results of these experiments meet with the approval of the city authorities and the Radio is accepted as a permanent adjunct in the city's criminalhunting business, crooks and other lawbreakers will be apprehended in minutes instead of hours and days after the commission of a crime. Together with a committee of newspaper men invited by Chief of Police Louis D. Oaks to act as judges of the efficiency of Radio, and with several of the police automobiles equipped with Radio receiving sets, a "crook" in a high-powered car was to be sought by a fleet of department autos each one of the pursuing machines being directed by the voice of Chief Oaks — sitting in his own car, perhaps miles away from the scene of the chase. How Flan Works The police automobiles were notified of the crime, were given the number of the bandit car, its direction when last seen, the number of persons in the car, and other bits of information which the central office had at the time. Chief Oaks stated that "the fine point in the chase" was that he knew where the crime was committed, and that he also knew where his scout cars were stationed at the time. "Suppose that the robbery took place on Tenth street and also suppose that I have Radio-equipped auto , mobiles located at Fiftieth street, First street and at other streets east and west of the point where the crime was committed. "Then it would be merely a matter of ordering the Fiftieth street auto to head toward Tenth street, the First street car to head out toward Tenth and the other outlying cars to come in, as the circumstances of the particular crime would seem to dictate. The crook in his highpowered car, with his number known and with several other marks of identification at once in the hands of each police automobile, will stand but little chance of getting away." Kiddies* Story Teller Profits by Broadcasts "Lamplight Tales" of Caroline Bouve, Proven Feature BOSTON, MASS. — At least one author is strong for the Radiophone. This is Miss Caroline Bouve, author of "Lamplight Tales," who says that the bedtime story telling from. WNAC by Mrs. Stewart, who was the first to introduce "Lamplight Tales" to the Radio public, have heavily increased the sales of Miss Bouve's book in and around Boston. Miss Bouve recently paid a personal call at WNAC to meet Mrs. Stewart and thank her for her splendid rendition of the stories. The Children's Half-hour, three times a week, proves a big attraction to thousands of children throughout New England, who are privileged to listen in. The British war office reports the loss of seven secret Radio codes, and an entirely new set of codes is now in process of drafting. THE ANTENNA BROTHERS Spir L. and Lew P. Shades of Hertzian Waves w