By means of this duplex employment of the same radio wave, it is possible to get, for example, both the gesture and the voice of an inaugural address; the play and the cheers of a national sport; or the acting and song of grand opera.
Perhaps it might be explained that synchronism in visual-audible radio reception is accomplished by the simple expedient of keeping the radio picture “framed,” exactly as this is done in the motion picture theatre.
But continuing the description of the still picture processes a little further, before taking up Radio Vision and Radio Movies, it might be added that while photographs by radio is the more interesting and impressive process, there is little doubt but that radio photo letters will be of much greater immediate service in business.
Commerce, like an army, can go forward no faster than its means of communication. The history of industrial advance in all ages shows that with every addition to communication facilities the volume of business has increased. Obviously a third electrical means of communication will enlarge business, and speed up commerce and industry.
As an aid in national defense the chief of staff of the Signal Corps of the Army, in a recently published report to the Secretary of War, said (Washington Star, November 22, 1924):
“Looking into the future of signal communication for a moment, it appears that the basic method of breaking messages up into words, words into letters, letters into dots-and-dashes, and then passing these through the wrist of an operator, as has been the practice since Morse’s fundamental invention of the electric telegraph, seems to be nearing the end of a cycle. Mechanical transmitters with higher speed qualities are becoming stabilized and American invention seems to be making further and rapid progress in associating photography with radio, which bids fair to revolutionize fundamental methods of transmission.
“The message of the future, whether it be written, printed, of mixed with diagrams and photographs, including the signature of the sender, will, it seems certain, soon be transmitted photographically by radio frequency at a rate tens of times faster than was ever possible by the dot-and-dash methods of hand transmission.
“Military messages of the future, particularly in active operations, may contain diagrams and sketches, or even entire sheets of maps, all transmitted as part of the same message and by means of which detection or listening-in will be reduced to a very low minimum.”
The author suggests that it might be added that the newcomer, the radio photogram, has merits distinctly its own, e. g.:
(1) It is autographically authentic; (2) it is photographically accurate; (3) it is potentially very rapid; (4) it is little effected by static; (5) it is not effected by storms; and (6) it is automatic and tireless.