In 1895 a wireless signal surpassed an obstacle a mile far, the hill behind Griffone’s Villa, in Bologna. It was the house of Guglielmo Marconi. Marconi was only 21 years old, but he changed the world in a day.
The device created by Marconi sang three times beyond the Celestini’s hill, this was the birth of the radio.
Guglielmo Marconi was a genius, a daydreamer but also a businessman. He had a vision, and his vision today is our wireless world: the telegraph, the radio, the internet but also all the probes that everyday explore our solar system are the realization of his big dream.
In July 1897 Marconi founded the Wireless Telegraph Trading Signal Company in London, which opened its first office on Hall Street in Chelmsford, England, in 1898 and employed approximately fifty people.
Marconi subsequently concentrated his research towards the Atlantic, convinced that waves could cross the ocean following the curvature of the Earth. On December 12, 1901, the communication that constituted the first transoceanic radio signal took place. The message received is made up of three dots, the letter S of Morse code.
Marconi received the Nobel prize in Physics in 1909, he was an autodidact scientist, he never had a degree, but he had many honorary degrees.
In 1912 the importance of the emergency radio was before everyone’s eyes: the Titanic sank after sending the SOS signal via radio, 705 people survived thank to the radio communication.
Then his businessman career, his military and his political careers. An article is not enough to tell the whole story, a story that is much more compelling than probably anyone knows. History studies are also in progress to understand his political role.
The last week Bologna and Italy celebrated Marconi’s 150 anniversary of his birth (25th April 1874 – 25th April 2024) with educational workshops for children and teenagers, guided tours of historical objects, inventions and period technologies, shows and screenings for all ages, and, again, meetings and presentations, debates and conferences, exhibitions and television events (www.museomarconi.it).
It’s important that next generations learn from Marconi’s example: the ideas, the knowledge and the passion for discovery move the world towards a better future.
