Marconi Museum |
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visits: Sunday at 10 am
working days on reservation
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 info visits
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Born in Mymensingh (Bengal) in 1858, Bose was schooled first in Calcutta, then, as of 1880, in England (London and Cambridge). In 1885 he returned to India, where he went on to teach physics at Calcutta's Presidency College for over thirty years. During his time at Presidency College, he was able to conduct his research, even if treated unfairly and discriminated against because he was a “native”. Interested in electromagnetism, he pursued an experiment with microwaves (about 5 mm) and, in a public demonstration that took place on November 1894 in Calcutta, Bose used them to make a bell ring remotely and some gunpowder explode. In 1896, during a conference in London, he met Marconi, who at the time was conducting experiments for the Post Office. No correspondence ensued, also because Bose, very much contrary to patents, always manifested his indifference to the economic aspect of his research. In Calcutta, he continued his work on electromagnetic waves for a few years, incidentally being the first to experiment semiconductors as detectors. After 1900, his interest turned to plant physiology, studying in particular the effect of microwaves on plant tissues. He invented the “crescograph”, an instrument used to record plant growth. He applied his sensitivity research to metals as well, exposing them to electric stimulus. A member of numerous academies and institutions, he was invested with the title of “Sir” in 1916. He later founded and directed the Bose Institute. In 1937 he died in Giridih (Bengal). The antecedence question – raised for almost all inventions but in particular for the radio and wireless – closely concerns Bose. It's undeniable that by pursuing an autonomous line of research, Bose was among the first to achieve a series of significant experimental results. Perhaps he can be considered to hold, together with Telsa, a sort of chronologic record. Both however, for various reasons and modalities, ignored and neglected the field of radiotelegraphy, which was instead Marconi's chosen field. Nevertheless they both belong by right to the pantheon of communication at a distance.
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Before the invention of the transistor, for almost half a century from the beginning of the 1900's, radios as well as many other electronic devises were basically valve sets. It was John Ambrose Fleming who invented the diode or thermionic valve. Fleming was born in Lancaster in 1849. He studied under the famous James Clerk Maxwell and then worked as a researcher and professor of electrical engineering in Cambridge, Nottingham and London. He also invented the right-hand rule of electromagnetism. In 1899, at the age of fifty, Fleming was already a famous scientist. He accepted Marconi's proposal to work with him and became his scientific consultant. He was immediately involved in the technical breakthrough that many people thought impossible – the wireless transmission across the Atlantic Ocean. Fleming played a key role in planning the stations that allowed Marconi, on 12 December 1901, to establish his historic wireless connection across the Atlantic. The relationship between Marconi and Fleming continued for years and although they did not always get along very well Marconi never interfered with Fleming's personal research. In 1904 Fleming devised the first prototype thermionic valve. Although its application was not yet clear, Marconi decided to produce it as a new electromagnetic detector in his Chelmsford factory. Marconi’s Nobel lecture held at the Swedish Royal Academy proves how much he trusted and valued Fleming. When talking about the development of his experiments, Marconi cited a long extract from Fleming’s book The Principles of Electric Wave Telegraphy, published in London in 1906. He referred to the book several times and also recalled Fleming’s contribution to the transatlantic adventure. Marconi held Fleming in great esteem, even though they had different opinions – for instance on the relationship between daylight and wavelength. Fleming worked as a scientific consultant for the Marconi Company until 1931 and died aged ninety-six in 1945.
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© 2013 - Fondazione Guglielmo Marconi - Villa Griffone - via Celestini 1 - 40037 Pontecchio Marconi (BO) - C.F 80063250379