Storia sociale dei radioamatori e altri pionieri

L'editore McFarland, lo stesso che tempo fa ha pubblicato lo splendido romanzo storico delle onde corte scritto da Jerry Berg, "On The Shortwaves", torna sull'argomento della passione radiofonica con una storia sociale della radio amatoriale, "The World of Ham Radio, 1901-1950". Riporto qui la scheda del volume, l'indice e il link ad Amazon per l'eventuale acquisto. Peccato siano 55 dollari, anche con il cambio favorevole non resta che confidare in Babbo Natale.
Anche perché il catalogo McFarland è uno scrigno di tesori inaspettati, come la storia del pioniere dimenticato Charles Herrold, proprietario della prima stazione radiofonica regolare al mondo e uno dei primi cervelli imprenditoriali della Silicon Valley. Herrold studiò fisica e astronomia a Stanford, aprì la sua stazione a San Jose nel 1909, la dovette chiudere allo scoppio della Prima Guerra, la riaprì come KQW e la rivendette più volte fino a che la stazione non venne rilevata dalla CBS. Una saga, non troppo fortunata per Herrold che non divenne mai ricco. Per fortuna la storia è raccontata, almeno sommariamente, sul sito Web curato da Mike Adams uno degli autori di "Charles Herrold, Inventor of radio broadcasting" (McFarland 2003, 259p, $45)

The World of Ham Radio, 1901–1950
A Social History
Richard A. Bartlett

ISBN 978-0-7864-2966-0 photos, appendices, notes, bibliography, index 292pp. hardcover (7 x 10) 2007, $55


During the first fifty years of the twentieth century, ham radio went from being an experiment to virtually an art form. Because of the few government restrictions and the low monetary investment required, the concept of ham radio appealed to various people. More than just a simple hobby, however, ham radio required its operators to understand radio theory, be able to trace a schematic and know how to build a transmitter and receiver with whatever material they might have available. With the advent of World War II and the increased need for cutting-edge communications, the United States government drew upon the considerable knowledge and skill of these amateur ham radio operators, validating the fact that ham radio was here to stay.

This book explores the history of ham radio operators, emphasizing their social history and their many contributions to the technological development of worldwide communications. It traces the concept of relays, including the American Radio Relay League, from contacts as close as 25 miles apart to operators anywhere in the world. The book highlights the part played by ham radio in many of the headlined events of the half century, especially exploration and aviation “firsts”. The ways in which these primarily amateur operators assisted in times of disaster including such events as the sinking of the Titanic and the 1937 Ohio River flood, are also examined.

About the Author
Richard A. Bartlett, professor emeritus of Florida State University, lives in Tallahassee.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii
Introduction 1

1. The Beginnings 5
2. Hiram Percy Maxim and the Relay Concept 24
3. Amateurs During the First World War 40
4. Amateurs Between War and Peace 53
5. Surviving the Broadcast Revolution 64
6. Relays, DX-ing, Strange Languages, and Clubs 80
7. Amateurs as Experimenters and Adventurers 101
8. The Olympics, World’s Fairs, Trans Radio Press Service, and International Radio Conferences 116
9. Adventurous Amateurs at Sea and in the Air 130
10. More Amateurs and Aircraft: The NC-4, Byrd, the Dolebirds, the Lindberghs, and Others 140
11. Amateurs and Polar Exploration: Phase One 154
12. Amateurs and Polar Exploration: Phase Two 169
13. To the Rescue: Amateurs in Emergencies and Disasters 181
14. Amateurs on the Home Front: 1940–1945 200
15. Amateurs at War and Beyond: 1941–1950 211

Epilogue 231
Appendix A. Morse Code Alphabet 237
Appendix B. Q Signals and Other Abbreviations 238
Appendix C. Common Abbreviations in Amateur Morse Code 240
Chapter Notes 241
A Bibliographic Essay 261
Index 273