Portal:Physics/Selected article/June 2010


 * The subject of the month is Radio

Below are several introductions to Wikipedia articles related to radio: History of radio, Invention of radio, an article entitled Radio and the radio "Antenna". Also below, is a biography of an individual who contributed to this technology.


 * History of radio - is the history of technology that produced radio instruments that use radio waves. Within the timeline of radio, many people contributed theory and inventions in what became radio. Radio development began as "wireless telegraphy".  Later radio history increasingly involves matters of programming and content. During its early development and long after wide use of the technology, disputes persisted as to who could claim sole credit for this obvious boon to mankind. Closely related, radio was developed along with two other key inventions, the telegraph and the telephone.


 * Invention of radio - Within the history of radio, several people were involved in the invention of radio and there were many key inventions in what became the modern systems of wireless. Radio development began as "wireless telegraphy". Closely related, radio was developed along with two other key inventions, the telegraph and the telephone. During the early development of wireless technology and long after its wide use, disputes persisted as to who could claim credit for the invention of radio. The matter was important for economic, political and nationalistic reasons.


 * Radio - is the transmission of signals by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space. Information is carried by systematically changing (modulating) some property of the radiated waves, such as amplitude, frequency, phase, or pulse width. When radio waves pass an electrical conductor, the oscillating fields induce an alternating current in the conductor. This can be detected and transformed into sound or other signals that carry information.


 * Antenna (radio) - An antenna (or aerial) is a transducer that transmits or receives electromagnetic waves. In other words, antennas convert electromagnetic radiation into electrical current, or vice versa. Antennas generally deal in the transmission and reception of radio waves, and are a necessary part of all radio equipment. Antennas are used in systems such as radio and television broadcasting, point-to-point radio communication, wireless LAN, cell phones, radar, and spacecraft communication.

Selected biography: Jagadish Chandra Bose
 Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose CSI CIE FRS (Bengali: জগদীশ চন্দ্র বসু Jôgodish Chôndro Boshu) (November 30, 1858 – November 23, 1937) born in a Bengali Hindu Kayasth family was a polymath: a physicist, biologist, botanist, archaeologist, and writer of science fiction. He pioneered the investigation of radio and microwave optics, made very significant contributions to plant science, and laid the foundations of experimental science in the Indian subcontinent. He is considered one of the fathers of radio science, and is also considered the father of Bengali science fiction. He was the first person from the Indian subcontinent to get a US patent, in 1904.