THINGS TO COME

Evening Post, Volume CXXII, Issue 32, 6 August 1936, Page 28

THINGS TO COME

MARCONI LOOKS AT THE

FUTURE

In his authorised biography of Marconi, Dr. Pettinati tells how the inVentor of; wireless blends scientific knowledge with romantic foresight, and forecasts the world as he sees it twenty-five years hence. Sitting side by side,in the drawingroom of Marconi's beautiful flat in Rome, writes Dr. Pettinati, we had been discussing for a long time his work of the last 35 years. Inevitably our thoughts turned to the work of the next 35 years. For Marconi—who has now achieved all the fame that any man could desire, and has reached the age when even the greatest deserve to enjoy in t an easier life the fruits of their glory—is ; still working, and he intends to go on working "for as many years as it will please God to allow me in His infallible judgment.'.' Marconi has been often described as a sick man, and even as a man prematurely .afced by the strenuous life he had to live in his early days, but he has such an immense reserve of vitality that never has he had the remotest idea of. giving up his work. "The more I work the more I see the enormous strides which are still to be made in the path of wireless," he said after a long-pause. "Yes; half of the world appreciates how little has been done in comparison to what can still be done and will be done. The future? Who can truthfully speak of the future? Who would seriously venture into the realm of prophecy? Yet I cannot deny that wireless is almost in its infancy, and that those who come after us will see many developments which to our eyes still seem almost incredible." For instance, it is more than likely that in the next 20 or 30 years we shall see the following important developments taking place:;— 1. Facsimile transmission of telegrams in the sender's handwriting. 2. The growth of television to make it as popular as wireless is today. 3. The transmission of power by wireless. 4. The curing of disease by wireless rays. < 5. The development of directed waves. "When I anuasked about the future of wireless my imagination does not take wing and fly to other planets millions of miles away. Why think about Mars when there is so much useful work to be done on earth? I do not say that . with other planets is impossible. If the other planets are inhabited by people of the"' same intelligence as ourselves. I do not see that communication With them will always be impossible. Bu^t I must solve all the problems that confront me on this planet before I turn to the other planets; Although wireless is in general use throughout the world, and television is. rapidly becoming commercially practicable, the realm Of wireless science still contains many unexplored regions in which we are obliged to grope in darkness. A SCIENTIFIC THRILL. "I am much less interested in these fantastic speculations than, for example, in the question of wave direction, on which I have worked for years. The practical importance of direct waves', is great. Wireless waves diffuse themselves in all directions. Direct 'waves go only on the required line, and can be received only by the station for which they are intended. Since I first received the letter 'S' across the Atlantic, the happiest moment of my scientific life was in 1923, when I received the first directed waves between London and Australia. , Think what these directed waves will mean. "The diffusion of waves costs much more than would messages directed straight at their destination. By concentrating on the ; beam system of directed waves; and the development of ultra-short wavelengths,, we shall speed the life of the world immensely. The ether will be filled with myriads of messages proceeding like lightning along their selected path, instead of being broadcast at random into space. This will ensure the secrecy that has been lacking so far in the transmission of wireless messages. - That will be a tremendous advantage.in war time—if you can call anything that facilitates the waging of warfare an advantage. "Spies will have portable sets and will be able to communicate with other spies or with their headquarters without the risk of their messages being intercepted. It will also be possible to %peak by word of mouth by the beam system to aeroplanes in 'the air. To do so it will be necessary to know their situation and altitude, so that the beams-may be directed to them and not picked up by enemy aeroplanes. My own impression is that the development of wireless will tend to make war less likely. When we can speak to countries thousands of miles away as readily and as cheaply as we can put through a local call to a neighbouring street, the world will'be living in greater harmony. The more "you know people the better you like them. Mutual understanding, which wireless will make possible, .will diminish the possibility of war. lam not a prophet. But logic and common sense bring me to believe that there will be a happier humanity -when : the. diffidence, . distrust, and' misunderstanding brought about by lack of knowledge of other races are removed."