Speaking about the triode, I have a 1926 RCA Radiola. It still works. It has no electrolytic capacitors, they were not invented yet. It has no mixer and is not superhetrodyne. Its a tuned radio frequency set. The pueter speaker that sets on the top has a horseshoe magnet in it. The paper is still good in the speaker but I don't play it much or loud since I suspect the paper will crumble. It was last repaired in 1932 as shown by the sticker on the 4 pin triode tube. It breaks into oscillation allot and sequels when it does so. If a light switch is turned on or off in the house the radio responds with a loud crack. Picture below. If Mary were here we could listen to it.
http://www.angelfire.com/scifi2/zpt/radio.html Frank Znidarsic -----Original Message----- From: Jed Rothwell <[email protected]> To: vortex-l <[email protected]> Sent: Sun, Jan 29, 2012 4:49 pm Subject: [Vo]:New book "Empires of Light" about Edison, Westinghouse and the "current wars" My daughter got me this book for Christmas: http://www.amazon.com/Empires-Light-Edison-Westinghouse-Electrify/dp/0375758844/ref=sr_1_1 As readers here know, Edison and Westinghouse fought over whether to use DC or AC. That was big news in the 1880s but people soon forget it. This book is not technical. It is more about the history and the people. It is well written. You can read the first chapter on line at Amazon.com. There are many controversies in cold fusion now, such as who should get how much credit for the nanoparticle Ni-H approach. You can make a case for Mills, Piantelli or Rossi, or even Arata. This dispute is similar to the dispute about who developed commercial radio, Lee De Forest or Fleming. This dispute was big news at the time, but it is forgotten today. It is described in another book with a similar title: "Empire of the Air: The Men Who Made Radio." De Forest did invent the triode, as far as I know. - Jed
