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The word ‘Information’ has many differentmeanings in everyday usage and in specializedcontexts. However, as a concept it is closelyrelated to data, instruction, knowledge etc.Information is usually a message, somethingto be communicated from the sender to thereceiver. But, if information is viewed merelyas a message, it does not have to be accurate.It may be a truth or a lie, or just the sound of a kiss. Strangely it may even be a disruptivenoise used to inhibit the flow of communication and create misunderstanding.Information can also be viewed as a type of input to an organism or designed device. Someinputs are important to the function of theorganism (for example, food) or device(energy) by themselves.Communication is the process of exchanging information. Peoplecommunicate in order to share knowledge and experiences, give or receiveorders, or cooperate. Common forms of human communication includesign language, speaking, writing, gestures, and broadcasting.Communication can be interactive, intentional, or unintentional. It canalso be verbal or nonverbal; Internal communication or intrapersonalcommunication (within oneself) and interpersonal communication(between two individuals). At larger scales of communication, small groupcommunication takes place between few individuals such as organizationalcommunication in settings like companies or communities. At the largestscales, mass communication can be from a single source to a huge number
TTTTTechnologyechnologyechnologyechnologyechnologyforforforforforcommunicatingcommunicatingcommunicatingcommunicatingcommunicatinginformationinformationinformationinformationinformation
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of individuals using various communication media such as newspapers,television or computers.
How do we communicate?How do we communicate?How do we communicate?How do we communicate?How do we communicate?
We all use different methods at different times to communicate. We cancommunicate by makinggestures with parts of our body,for example shaking of our heador hands, winking, making facesetc. We also communicate byspeaking or making sounds likelaughing, weeping or sobbing. Ata more advanced level wecommunicate by writing andreading. At this moment theauthor is communicating to youthrough the text and picturesprinted on the pages of this book.But, there is yet another way we can communicate. That is by usingelectrical gadgets, invented by scientists and technologists, for example,radio, telephone, television and computers. For such communicationelectromagnetic waves come handy.
What are electromagnetic waves?What are electromagnetic waves?What are electromagnetic waves?What are electromagnetic waves?What are electromagnetic waves?
Electromagnetic waves are a kind of waves that pervade the universe.They are so called because they often originate due to interaction of electriccharges and magnets. Light is also an electromagnetic wave.In 1831, a British scientist Michael Faraday discovered that changingelectric current in a coil of wire induces a current in a nearby coil. The
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current induced in the second coil is proportional to its number of turns.In 1865, James Clerk Maxwell discovered the mechanism of interactionbetween electricity and magnetism. He suggested that a change in electriccurrent can start a train of waves, the electromagnetic waves, that radiateinto space just like light waves. According to him, the only differencebetween a light wave and an electromagnetic wave is a characteristic of waves-the wavelength. Not all scientists accepted Maxwell’s ideas; afterall there was no proof of the existence of electromagnetic waves. TheBerlin Academy of Science offered a prize to anyone who could provethat electromagnetic waves exist. In 1879, Heinrich Rudolf Hertz, aGerman scientist took the challenge in 1886.Hertz was aware of the work of Faraday. He devised a simpleexperimental setup made up of two devices. The first device had twocoils placed near one another. He passed electric current from a batteryinto the first wirecoil. The secondcoil had many moreturns than the firstcoil. As per thediscovery of Faraday the voltagedeveloped in thesecond coil wasmuch higher thanthat of the battery. This current was led to a pair of capacitors. (A capacitoris a pair of metal plates that can accumulate electricity until they can holdno more.) As soon as the capacitors were charged to their capacity theydischarged by sending an electric spark between two small metallic balls.The second device had similar balls connected to a wire that was bentinto a circle and it was placed at a distance from the first device.He demonstrated that whenever an electric spark was generated in
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