ON THE AIR

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 12 November 1927, Page 18

ON THE AIR

(By "Wave Length.") "Wavelength" Invites readers to for ward short accounts of their experiences in reception, and Items of Interest on any subject likely to Interest their fellow radio enthusiasts. A Christchurch paper is running a plebiscite to ascertain tne type oi broadcast programmes supplied by the local station that have had the appeal to listeners. The result should be interesting.

\\ atli the advent of summer time doubtless our New Zealand stations will be heard more . than ‘ hitherto. The reason lor this is that to hear the programmes irom across the Tasman it wou.d be necessary tor one to wait up until 10.33 p.m., but it must be granted that the average person will be enjoying the extra hour by outside recieation or by working iu tne open.

The volume from the Wellington station seems stronger than before to the writer’s mind. The volume rheostat need only be just oh, and, if desired, no aerial is necessary.

Station WGL. New York, carries its own reporting staff, so that if a news event of any great importance occurs, the station will be in a position to gi.e its listeners a first-hand account.

“We know for a certainty that big tilings are just around the corner,” said Mr. M. M. Ayiesworth, president o. the National Broadcasting Company oi America, speaking recently of possible wireless inventions (says an exchange). “'We expect that we shall li.e to see motion pictures flashed on to tne walls of our homes. Science may even lind a way, to break down food into electrons and transmit them to oar kitchen by radio, and there reassemble them for nourishment. This sounds like the wildest nonsense at the moment, but the radio itself seemed line nonsense only a couple of decades ago.”

Listeners (possessing receivers capable of tuning in the Australian stations must have wondered somewhat (if they did not realise what was happening) when, on tuning in 2BL, 3LO, 4QG, and 2FC recently, they heard the same speaker from all lour stations. It was a simultaneous broadcast of a speech by Mr. L. C. M. S. Amery. He must have had several hundred thousand listeners that night, what an audience! Conditions were found to be excellent for distant reception, and, as there was also very little lading during his speech, Mr. Amery was heard at good loud-speaker strength as clearly as if in the same room with the listener.

“Hello. England! Hello, Canada! Hello, India! Hello, the States! Hello, ships at sea! Hello, Australasia! This is station 2i<C, Sydney, transmitting on a wave length of 28.5 metres,” said the announcer. “We a.e glad to near of your wonderful reception of yesterday morning's programme. Tne time at this'moment in Sydney is 3.18 p.m. on November .1. we are broadcasting by re.ay over a land line of over 600 miles irom Melbourne a description of the Melbourne Cap race. This is the first time in the history of wireless that an attempt uill be made to describe a horse race in the actual running by means of short-wave transmission lor reception at the opposite side of the world.”

“At least two new and very novel competitions are under consideration by u..!/, Ale i bourne. One is meant to bring out into the open the shy, longhaired woman It is believed that s. meu here hidden away, whether in t; e wilds of Eitzroy or the secret places of Gippsland, may be found still 1 ng-liuired women hiding tlieir tresses irom the shears of the barber. The time has come when long liair is regaining its value, owing to its rarity. Lefore long hair actually becomes a museum piece, 3LO, Alelbourne, wants to locate it To this end women lucky enough to possess it are to be offered an inducement to permit it to be photographed, classified, and documented. 1 have no idea of the conditions that will govern this contest. 1 simply tell that the project is in the hair, so to speak.”—‘‘Bay Dio” of 3LO’s studio.

The advantages of wireless are no longer confined to the transmission of messages, for the discovery is being increasingly adapted to meet domestic needs, stated a recent message irom iiC.lidon. The latest experiment is being made at York railway station in order to assist the travelling public to find the trains during the busy hours, when many trains from various points arrive at the same time, and passengers have to change. Formerly there was a scene of much confusion at holiday times, which has been in some measure alleviated by a new system of indicating the platform, but greater reliance is placed on announcements broadest.st to the waiting passengers. Three loud speakers of powerful range have been installed. The amplifiers are o a special type, with long range, and when there are no engines letting off steam, hut merely the ordinary noises of the station, the announcements can be heard near the end of No. 4 platform, which is 1,692 feet long—the longest in the British Isles, if one excepts the new platform which links up Victoria and Exchange stations at Manchester. Even while engines are blowing off steam and trains are moving. the voice of the announcer can be heard above the traffic well down the plat orm. The announcements are made from the central signal box, that placed on the up main platform. The announcer uses a microphone specially designed for the purpose, which excludes all sounds in the box except the oi e of the speaker.