COMMUNICATION AND INFORMATION

TRANSMISSION DURING THE INDUSTRIAL

AGE
GROUP 3 MEMBERS
KEVIN IRUNGU - 668115
GRACY KISIA - 669175
MUHAMUD OMAR - 668751
BRYAN BERNARD- 669687
MARIA SHILANDO-668181
ANNE GITHINJI - 664526
INTRODUCTION

The industrial age, spanning from the late 18th century to the early 20th century, marked a period
of technological advancements that profoundly reshaped societies across the globe. As
industries grew and expanded, the need for effective communication became increasingly
important. The following paragraphs explore key aspects of communication during this era,
including the purpose of transmitting information and the importance of accuracy and reliability
in communication as well as the means employed, audience size , the volume of information
transmitted in a single communication method and the speed of information transmission.

PURPOSE OF TRANSMITTING INFORMATION

• During the industrial age, information transmission served the purpose of facilitating
coordination, control, and standardization within industries. Instructions, orders, and plans
could be sent to different departments, ensuring everyone was on the same page.
• Through communication, technologists could also share information regarding technological
advancements, while businesses could manage inventory and finances across wide
geographical areas. Additionally, communication facilitated the sharing of product
information with customers, allowing for seamless interactions and enhanced business
operations.
• Overall, communication was vital to the success of various industries, thus a fundamental
element in driving the industrial revolution forward and a key factor in the growth of the
global economy during the industrial age. As such, it was important that communication be
reliable and efficient. 2
 NEWSPAPERS
• The London Gazette was first published as
The Oxford Gazette on 7 November 1665.
• Newspapers such as the London gazette were
widely available and played a crucial role in
providing the public with news, opinions and
ideas.

LETTERS
• Letters were essential for communication
particularly for business transactions and
communicating with loved ones. At the time
it was the most common means of
communication before the invention of the
telegraph and telephone.
PUNCH CARDS
• It is a simple paper that can hold data in the
form a small punched holes which are
strategically positioned to be read by
computers or machines.
• It is an early computer programming relic
that was used before the many data storage
advances
•  In 1911 punched-card equipment used for
the first time to process the British census.

TYPEWRITER
• A typewriter is used to print characters
on a piece of paper by depressing keys.
Typewriters were popular and enabled
fast and professional-looking business
communication from the late nineteenth
through the late twentieth centuries.
• The typewriter impacted the industrial
revolution because: With the typewriter
it was much easier to spread news to
more people faster, it was also less
expensive, because you wouldn't need as
much workers to pay.
KINETOGRAPH {MOTION PICTURE
PHOTOGRAPHY/ PROJECTION}
• In 1890 Dickson unveiled the Kinetograph, a
primitive motion picture camera. In 1892 he
announced the invention of the Kinestoscope,
a machine that could project the moving
images onto a screen. In 1894, Edison
initiated public film screenings in recently-
opened "Kinetograph Parlors."
 TELEGRAPH
The telegraph, a device which used electric
impulses to transmit encoded messages
over a wire, would eventually revolutionize
long-distance communication, reaching the
height of its popularity in the 1920s and
1930s.In addition to helping invent the
telegraph, the Morse code assigned a set of
dots and dashes to each letter of the English
alphabet and allowed for the simple
transmission of complex messages across
telegraph lines.
TELEPHONE
The telephone helped the Industrial
Revolution by allowing for immediate
communication between people, allowing
them to exchange ideas and information. First
patented by Alexander Graham Bell in 1876,
the telephone expanded the whole notion of
communication.
SPEED OF COMMUNICATION

• Quick exchange of information was important during the industrial age. Before
communication technologies like the telegraph and telephone, communication relied on
slower physical transportation methods such as letters and newspapers.
• Messages often took days or even weeks to reach their destinations, resulting in delays in
coordinating activities, making decisions, and disseminating information. With the advent of
the telegraph, communication speed improved. The telegraph allowed for almost instant
transmission of messages across long distances through electrical signals. Messages could
be sent and received swiftly within a matter of hours.
• Similarly, the telephone had a profound impact on communication speed. Real-time voice
communication became possible, enabling individuals to have direct conversations despite
their physical distance.
• The increased speed of communication had several benefits. In industries, instructions,
orders, and plans could be transmitted quickly to different departments and this improved
workflow. Faster transmission of scientific and technological information also enabled
researchers to collaborate more effectively, leading to faster advancements in knowledge
and innovation. At the same time, managers could rely on timely and accurate
communication regarding inventory numbers, financial information, and customer demands
to make informed decisions.
IMPORTANCE OF ACCURACY AND RELIABILITY IN COMMUNICATION

• Accuracy and reliability in communication held immense significance during the industrial
age. Firstly, precise instructions were crucial in industrial processes, as inaccuracies could
lead to costly errors and delays. Accurate communication therefore minimized disruptions and
ensured smooth manufacturing operations. Secondly, accurate and reliable communication
was instrumental in disseminating scientific and technological knowledge, fostering progress
and collaboration.
• Lastly, accuracy in transmitting information was crucial to running businesses as managers
could rely on communicated inventory numbers, and financial information regarding their
businesses. It also ensured customers could rely on the information disseminated by
companies on products, prices and availability. Overall, accuracy and reliability in
communication were foundational to operational efficiency, scientific advancements and
business development during the industrial age.
VOLUME OF INFORMATION TRANSMITTED AND AUDIENCE SIZES

The means of communication discussed above also differed in terms of the amount of
information they could transmit and the size of the audience they could reach.
• The Telegraph, for example, allowed for messages to be transmitted simultaneously to
multiple locations, enabling broader distribution of information. The telegraph used Morse
code and a typical message contained 15 words, transmitting approximately 47 bytes of data
or 375 bits.
• Similarly, the Telephone enabled communication with groups or individuals over large
distances, expanding the potential audience for discussions. Every phone call typically used
sixty-four kilobits per second or approximately 8 kilobytes of data per second.
• Letters, on the other hand, were more personalized and typically had a limited audience, often
restricted to specific individuals or small groups. They typically had a few hundred pages of
text and may be anything between a few hundred bytes and a few kilobytes in size.
• Arguably, Newspapers had the largest potential to reach a wide readership, disseminating
information to a mass audience. A newspaper's single edition included numerous news stories,
advertising, detailed illustrations, published as pictorial weeklies. These illustrations were
printed from woodcut engravings made from reporters’ sketches or another new, revolutionary
technology: photographs. A typical newspaper could easily exceed several megabytes or even
tens of gigabytes depending on the number of pages, text, and photographs it contains.
CONCLUSION
• In conclusion, communication and information transmission played a vital role
during the industrial age, contributing to the progress and success of various
industries and driving the growth of the global economy.
• Effective communication facilitated coordination and control within industries,
supported dissemination of scientific knowledge, consequently supporting scientific
advancement, and enabled successful business operations. Different means of
communication, including newspapers, letters, the motion projector, punch cards
were employed during this era. These varied in terms of the volume of information
they could carry as well as the size of audiences that they could reach.
• Notably, the speed of communication significantly improved with the introduction of
technologies like the telegraph and telephone, which enabled almost instant
transmission of messages and facilitated improved workflow in industries, effective
collaboration among researchers and faster decision-making in businesses. Overall,
the industrial age marked a transition towards more efficient and rapid
communication, laying the foundation for further advancements that would shape
the modern era.