We are all used to the possibilities made available by the Internet and information and communications technology (ICT), but only those of us who are at least in our 40s can truly appreciate the difference between the present day and the time when rapid long-distance bidirectional communication could only take place via telegraph, telephone, and telex. A similar revolution occurred in the late 1830s with the invention of the telegraph, the first electric technology to gain wide success. However, this pioneering equipment performed badly; with the conductivity of commercial copper around 40% lower than its present value and insulating material unreliable, it was a common practice to lay bare overhead lines hanging on wooden poles with glass or porcelain insulators.
The Conquest of the Atlantic [Historical]
GUARNIERI, MASSIMO
2014
Abstract
We are all used to the possibilities made available by the Internet and information and communications technology (ICT), but only those of us who are at least in our 40s can truly appreciate the difference between the present day and the time when rapid long-distance bidirectional communication could only take place via telegraph, telephone, and telex. A similar revolution occurred in the late 1830s with the invention of the telegraph, the first electric technology to gain wide success. However, this pioneering equipment performed badly; with the conductivity of commercial copper around 40% lower than its present value and insulating material unreliable, it was a common practice to lay bare overhead lines hanging on wooden poles with glass or porcelain insulators.
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