Evening star., 1925-01-10
RADIO QUERIES
Radio Editor:


Can you tell me what station broad
casts with the slogan. THE Radio
Lighthouse? The announcer said the
call letters would be changed next
Monday and that 1t was missionary
college. Also what station broadcast
story about a spider. evidently
story fo- children between and $50
o'clock Wednesday night? Was
WAAD. Cincinnati, on the air We'd
nesday night?-G. ". GREEN.
kFGZ. Berrien Springs, Mich. uses
the slogan, The Radio Lighthouse"
The new call letters OF this station
will be WEMC. 1t is operated by
Emanuel Missionary College. WAAD
did not send out an advance program
for Wednesday night, but the station
may have been on the air. Some fan
perhaps may be able to answer this
question as we'll as the one regarding
the station broadcastinG the story
about the spider.
Radio Editor:
Why is it that the reception of
radio signals is almost always worse
on rainy day than bright clear
| one?-MELVIN.
There are two reasons. The first
| Is that rain water on the antenna
supports and on the insulators forms
a thin film of water that is slightly
| conducting. Some of the signal
strength leaks away through this
water film. The second reason is
| that In rainy weather the atmosphere
| Is likely to be disturbed and stormy.
! All such disturbances increase the
] absorption of radio waves in transit
as well as increasing the percentage
OF fading and static.
Radio Editor:
Can you or some fan explain why
there is so much code interference
over the general broadcas sting wave
lengths? Code comes in practically
everywhere on the dials, notwith
standing that mine is a selective set:
It also runs the scale for sound
picthes, ranging from a deep rumble
TO a very high note like the sharp
chirping of q bird, with all sorts OF
noises thrown in for good measure.
Run down" batteries cannot account
for the noises in my case. for all
the batteries are fresh--the "B' bat
teries are new and were tested, and
the "A" battery fully recharged
within the past "a hours and tested
with hydrometer before using.
The following will illustrate what
happened on the evening of January
I, while trying to enjoy the program
from some stationary station at
all-nOt ChOiCy as to Wnlcl.
II p.m.-kDkA reporting Walker
McTigue fight. Most of the time there
was an accompanying noise like big
paddle wheel would make with tho
paddles striking the pins very sharply
and apidly; code also along with it;
almost deafening at times when the
code, the paddle wheel and the broad
casting were all doing teamwork.
11:10-On a wave length of about
2s6 meters, very loud code.
11:15 p.m.-Ficious code on the same
wave length as KSD-suf1icient TO
drown out that station.
1920 p.m-An annoying backwash
of code on WOR's wave length of 400
meters.
l1:22 pm.-The same heavy back
wash of code on WGN's wave length,
$40 meters.
1927 pm.-When WIS came in the
same code backwash was there, but
| somewhat smothered. However. it
was accompanied by an intermittent
sound resembling the firing of small
| firecrackers or the twirling of a rat
tie like the small boy uses.
11:45-Shepard Stores, Providence
Some very nice music on the organ
at least II would have been nice IL II
had not been for continuous code
sounding like intermittent buZZing of
a very large bumblebee.
I'd had enough by that time and
gave 1t up for the evening in much
disgust. You will observe that the
| wave-length range Is pretty well
| covered, yet code came in everywhere.
This code cannot be attributed to
amateurs, for they are not operating
| on any such wave length.
! Who Is it that's cumming Up the
| ether that way and spelling the fine
programs that the broadcasting sta
| tions are going to much trouble and
certainly some expense to transmit?
| 1t would seem, If such interference is
to continue, that 1t will be impossible
| to enjoy these programs, hence what's
| the use of laying out good money for
! expensive receiving sets? Why can't
| this code be sent out on such wave
| lengths as will not interfere with
| general broadcasting? The code har-
monies q believe that's what they are
| called) on some of the low dial set
tings-say around 500 meters-is
| something frightful at times. GEN
| orally speaking, this code interference
! is most pervasive and creeps in, first
| with the backwash and then with the
loud harmonics, all over the dlals.
This 1t does sooner or later, whether
| or no, notwithstanding the use of u
| receiver which will tune by quarter
| degrees on the dials, or even finer
To make a long story short, this
code interference has become n grea
| nuisance. Isn't there some way to
| stop it and let us have the benefit of
the fine programs, musical, educa-
| .ional, etc.?--J. @. MASSEY ~
| Complaints OF code Interference
should be filed with Z. y Cadmus,
supervisor OF the third radio district,
/ at the customs house, Baltimore, Nd.
Nr. Cadmus has always expressed a
+, willingness to cooperate with Wa a,sh :
ington radio fans in tracing the origin
~ code iDterfernnce