Evening star., 1928-10-31
SPEAKER 'DEBUNKS'
| TELEWS|0N FUTURE
Radio Man Warns Public
Against Expecting Too Early
Development.
BY MARTIN CODEL

From the radio industry comes an
other "debunking" statement about tele-
vision. The trade and the public are
once more warned against expecting
television as q development of the next
year or the next few years, in an ad-
dress delivered by Louis B. F. Raycroft
vice president of the National Electrical
Manufacturers Association, in charge of
| its radio division, before the Fall con-
| ference Of 'Nema," now in session at
Briarcliff Manor, N. Y.
An engineering committee of "Nema"
must yet render its report on television
but Mr.. Raycroft plunged at once into
vigorous criticism of the vivid i'm
agination" of those who promise the
art of visual broadcasting and recep-
ton in the immediate future. He did
not say that televiSion will never come,
| nor will any one on the technical COM
mittee on television, which includes
such figures as DR.. A. N. Goldsmith
Ralph H. Langley, John v. L. Hogan
George Lewis, B. r. Cummings, r. L.
Davis, Julius Weinberger and Edgar
Felix
What Mr. Roycroft especially criti-
cised was the fact that the public has
been led to expect television in the
coming radio year because each year
so far has seen some fundamental i'm
provement in the receiving apparatus
This season 1t is the dynamic and mag
netic power speaker, last year it was
the alternating current filament supply
and the year before it was the single
dial control.
Radio, Mr.. Raycroft asserted, is en-
tering a more stable period in it's evo-
luton. This stability may lower pro-
duction costs which may result in saw
ings to the consumer. The industry
and "Nema" is not alone in its atti-
tude-does not want the impression to
go out that present receivers will soon
become obsolete by reason of the intro
duction soon of new audio and visual
receivers.
Public Given Bunk"
"The development expected by the
public for the coming radio year is
televiSion," declared Mr.. Raycroft Its
birth as a commercial product has been
confirmed in the public's mind by
loudly proclaimed television exhibits
at the various radio shows. Instead
of fulfilling their avowed purpose of
debunking television, these exhibits,
coupled with almost daily announce
ments Of allegedly new developments of
trick scanning discs and other i'm
provements of doubtful character. have
only confirmed public anticipation"
Mr.. Raycroft pointed out that the
24-line picture which can be transmit
ted on a 1O-kilocycle band has only
one-fifth the detail of the poorest quail
ity of newspaper reproduction. The
24-line televiSion reproduction is
inch square, and consists, he said, of
576 image points. newspaper half
tone of corresponding size has 1895
image points.
"The minimum television reproduc-
ton which can give a recognizable rep
resentation of the scrimmage of foot
ball game or show the action on a base
ball field consists of 1000 lines" he
said. ut is reasonable to state that
since we can send 50-line picture OH
1,000-kilocycle television channel, it
is 20 times as difficult to send 1000
line picture.
Having managed to build 50-story
building, would you consider 1t proof