three

Incandescent

“.. …. .- …- . -. --- - …. . .- .-. -.. .- -… .. .-. -.. … .. -. -.-. . .. .-- .- … - .-- . .-.. …- . -.-- . .- .-. … --- .-.. -.. “

- Thomas Alva Edison, 1885.


“In speed contests between expert Morse code operators and expert cellphone SMS text messaging users, Morse code has consistently won, leading to speculation that cellphone manufacturers might someday build interfaces for Morse code input.”

- Wikipedia entry on Morse Code (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morse_code)

1.

Electricity, like gravity, is a force of nature
no one “invented” it;
he did not invent the microphone
he had no machine that talked to the dead
although Edison claimed to have invented wax paper
he probably did not.
Edison did not lose his hearing
it is more accurate to say he was very hard
of hearing & the high-pitched sound
of the telegraph
“beats the babble
of ordinary conversation.”

He liked the phonograph so much
he called it his “baby.”
There are several stories
by people who knew Edison
that tell of him biting into phonographs
sound vibrations travelled through his teeth
to his inner ear.
(He bit the piano at home
as well.)


2.

Edison was a “news butcher” by twelve.
At fifteen, he roamed the country as a “tramp telegrapher”
moving thirteen times in seven years
often working all night
taking messages for trains
and even for the Union Army during the Civil War.
It was later found that people
become more proficient at receiving Morse code
when it was taught as a language that is heard
instead of one read from a page –
to reflect the sound of Morse code
practitioners began to vocalise
a dash as "dah"
and a dot as "dit."

At twenty-four, Edison noticed 16-year-old Mary
punching perforations into telegraph tape;
even on his wedding day
Edison returned to the lab to work
on his stock ticker.

In middle age, Edison still slept on laboratory tables
but he taught 20-year-old Mina Morse
so that they could have secret conversations
when her family was around
(her father held 92 patents
his most famous invention being
the Buckeye Mower
and Reaper)
tapping into each other’s hand.
In Morse code, the letters most commonly used
in the English language are assigned
the shortest sequences
but Edison always had what he needed
and incandescent lighting
is soft enough
for use indoors.


3.

Operators skilled in Morse code
can often "copy" code in their heads
at rates in excess of 40 WPM.
Some operators may have passed 100 WPM.
By this time they are "hearing" phrases
and sentences
rather than words.

In 1877, Edison recorded the first words
on a piece of tin foil.
He recited the nursery rhyme
“Mary Had a Little Lamb”
& the phonograph played the words
back to him.

Edison did not invent the first light bulb
he didn’t invent a hearing aid
he earned 150 patents on telegraph
improvements alone
(his daughter “Dot” claims to have seen Edison
propose marriage to Mina
using Morse code.)


4.

In 1927, Edison told 300 hard-of-hearing adults
"Deaf people should take to reading.”

There is little point in learning to read written Morse;
the sounds of all of the letters and symbols
need to be learned
for both sending and receiving.


5.

Edison once wrote, "I have not heard a bird sing
since I was twelve years old."

A dash is equal to three dots.
The space between parts of the same letter is equal to one dot.
The space between two letters is equal to three dots.
The space between two words is equal to five dots.

When the French navy ceased using Morse code in 1997
the final message transmitted was "Calling all.
This is our last cry
before our eternal silence."


* * *

Sources:

Edison National Historic Site: http://www.nps.gov/archive/edis/home.htm

Wikipedia entry on Morse code: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morse_code

Great moments in science / Edison and Light bulb: http://www.abc.net.au/science/k2/moments/s1523482.htm

* * *

Okay, I've got a full blown Edison obsession going...meant to work on a new poem. Only wanted to work on this one.