Electronics comes of age

Electronics Comes of Age L . V . B E R K N E R

F E L L O W A I E E

JU S T 50 years a g o , in t h e y e a r 1897, Professor J . J . T h o m s o n m a d e t h e p r o n o u n c e m e n t , b a s e d o n

c l e a r - c u t e x p e r i m e n t a l e v i d e n c e , of t h e s e p a r a t e ex is tence of e l e m e n t a r y nega t ive ly c h a r g e d pa r t i c l e s—elec t rons . I t was in t h e s a m e y e a r t h a t G u g l i e l m o M a r c o n i suc ­c e e d e d in r a d i o t r ansmiss ion across t h e Bristol C h a n n e l , a d i s t ance of n i n e mi les . T h e s e even t s , in a t a n g i b l e w a y , h i g h l i g h t e d t h e f o u n d a t i o n s o n w h i c h e lec t ron ics w a s t o b e e r e c t e d : n a m e l y , t h e e l e m e n t a r y pa r t i c l e s u p o n w h i c h it is b a s e d a n d t h e e x t e r n a l forces o r fields p r o d u c e d b y these pa r t i c l e s in m o t i o n . T h e p h e ­n o m e n a l d e v e l o p m e n t s in e lec t ron ics in t h e i n t e r v e n i n g yea r s m a r k t h e e m e r g e n c e of t h e sc ience a n d t h e asso­c i a t e d n a t i o n - w i d e i n d u s t r y of e lec t ron ics w i t h al l t h e pr ivi leges a n d responsibi l i t ies w h i c h go w i t h m a t u r i t y , pr iv i leges a n d responsibi l i t ies w h i c h h a v e b e e n a c q u i r e d w i t h g r o w t h a n d e x p a n s i o n

R O L E O F E L E C T R O N I C S

I n eve ry a spec t of t h e bas ic sciences , w e find e lec­t ron ics p l a y i n g a s ignif icant p a r t , e i t h e r d i r ec t ly o r as t h e ca ta lys t whose p re sence m a k e s scientific a d v a n c e feasible. T h e physicis t devises e l ec t ron ic c i rcu i t s as his " e y e s " de lve i n t o t h e n u c l e u s . T h e c h e m i s t dea l s w i t h e lec t ron ics in his s t u d y of t h e a t o m a n d its va lences , of p h o t o c h e m i s t r y , a n d of a h u n d r e d o t h e r c h e m i c a l p h e n o m e n a . T h e vis ta of t h e geophys ic is t is e n h a n c e d e n o r m o u s l y b y t h e tools of e lec t ron ics in his s t u d y of t h e e a r t h ' s c rus t , its i n t e r io r , a n d its a t m o s p h e r e . U n t i l r e c e n t t imes t he a s t r o n o m e r c o u l d v iew t h e sun a n d t h e s tars in on ly o n e o c t a v e of l igh t . N o w , t u r n i n g to t h e b r o a d e r po ten t ia l i t i e s of e lec t ron ics , h e c a n see t h e m ove r m a n y oc taves of e l e c t r o m a g n e t i c r a d i a t i o n . S i m i ­la r ly , t h e m e d i c a l sciences h a v e a c q u i r e d a power fu l n e w tool in t h e e l ec t ron m i c r o s c o p e , a tool w h i c h is of e q u a l i m p o r t a n c e to t h e me ta l l u rg i s t . I n fact , th is o n e e l e m e n t of e lec t ron ics , e l e c t r o n m i c r o s c o p y , is itself e m e r g i n g as a w h o l e n e w b r a n c h of sc ience .

E lec t ron ics , t h e n , serves as a c o m m o n m e e t i n g g r o u n d of all t he sciences in t h e i r r e l i ance u p o n its a p p l i c a t i o n s a n d devices . T h e c o n s t a n t references to phases of e lec t ron ics in t h e scientific j o u r n a l s a t t e s t to this c o m ­m o n d e p e n d e n c e . B u t j u s t as sc ience in g e n e r a l is d e p e n d e n t o n e lec t ron ics , so is e lec t ron ics d e p e n d e n t o n sc ience for its g r o w t h a n d n o u r i s h m e n t . I t is in

Esentially full text of a paper presented at the Third National Electronics Con­ference, Chicago, 111., November 3-7, 1947. L. V. Berkner is chairman, section ο iexploratory geophysics of the atmosphere department of terrestrial magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Wash­ington, D. C.

th is s y m b i o t i c r e l a t i o n s h i p t h a t t h e respons ib i l i ty for r e g e n e r a t i o n arises.

T h e m e n of e lec t ron ics a r e a n espec ia l ly p r iv i l eged g r o u p , b e c a u s e t h e y h a v e t h e o p p o r t u n i t y to j o i n i n t i ­m a t e l y in d e v e l o p m e n t s of al l of t h e sciences . T h e e lec t ron ics a r t , a n d t h e i n d u s t r y e r e c t e d u p o n it , h a v e a d i s t i ngu i shed h e r i t a g e of sc ience a n d i n v e n t i o n . F r o m t h e g e n e r a l b o d y of o r g a n i z e d sc ience a n d i n v e n t i o n t h e r e h a v e e m e r g e d d u r i n g t h e p a s t c e n t u r y a n d a q u a r t e r t h e m e n w h o s e w o r k h a s c o n t r i b u t e d signifi­c a n t l y a n d d i r ec t ly to t h e b u i l d i n g of e lec t ron ics , m e n such as F a r a d a y , H e n r y , M a x w e l l , Bell , Ed i son , H e r t z , J . J . T h o m s o n , M a r c o n i , L o r e n t z , B r a u n , a n d d e Fores t .

H o w e v e r , as a lways , w i t h p r iv i l ege goes respons ib i l i ty . T h e m e n of e lec t ron ics a r e e x p e c t e d to d e r i v e f rom t h e i r c u l t u r a l i n h e r i t a n c e , a n d f rom t h e i r assoc ia t ion w i t h t h e d e v e l o p m e n t of al l t h e sciences, n e w c r e a t i v e i m ­pulses a n d a freshness in p o i n t of v iew w h i c h wil l e n s u r e t h e c o n s t a n t v igo r a n d g r o w t h in t h e field of e l ec t ron ics t h a t a r e so essent ia l t o b o t h sc ience a n d i n d u s t r y as a w h o l e .

A D E F I N I T I O N

W h a t is e lec t ronics? I t is p e r h a p s too b o l d to off'er a n y concise def in i t ion for s u c h a d iverse sc ience , b u t o n e c a n s ay t h a t e l ec t ron ic s is t h e sc ience t h a t dea l s w i t h t h e m o t i o n of e lec t r i ca l ly c h a r g e d pa r t i c l e s in a field of force a n d w i t h t h e forces o r fields d e v e l o p e d b y s u c h pa r t i c l e s as a c o n s e q u e n c e of t h e i r m o t i o n . S i m i ­la r ly , t h e e lec t ron ics i n d u s t r y is t h a t b r a n c h of i n d u s t r y ( p r i m a r i l y ) d e p e n d e n t u p o n e l ec t ron ic p h e n o m e n a .

O f course , t h e scope , i m p l i c a t i o n s , a n d po ten t i a l i t i e s of a sc ience a n d i n d u s t r y so s i m p l y def ined a r e e x t r a ­o r d i n a r y . Espec ia l ly s t r ik ing is t h e faci l i ty w i t h w h i c h t h e a d v a n c e s in e l ec t ron ic sc ience h a v e b e e n t r a n s l a t e d , t h r o u g h a vir i le i n d u s t r y , t o a p p l i c a t i o n s of g r e a t benef i t to m a n k i n d . B u t t h e r e a r e still m a n y , m a n y u n s o l v e d p r o b l e m s of v i t a l i m p o r t a n c e for w h i c h e l ec t ron ics seems to offer a so lu t ion . C a n t h e sc ience a n d i n d u s t r y c o n t i n u e to m e e t th is c h a l l e n g e a d e q u a t e l y ? C a n e lec t ron ics c o n t i n u e its g r o w t h in m a t u r i t y t o a c h i e v e t h e u n t o l d p r o m i s e w h i c h s o m e h o l d for i t , o r wi l l i t , l ike B u r i d a n ' s ass i n t h e d e b a t e of t h e m e d i e v a l scholast ics , c o m e to rest b y a b a l a n c e of i n t e r n a l m o t i v a ­t ions a n d p ropu l s ions?

B A C K G R O U N D

I t h a s b e e n sa id t h a t t h e d a i l y m o d e of life of o u r g r a n d f a t h e r s w a s c loser t o t h e d a y s of J u l i u s C a e s a r

3 2 Berkner—Electronics Comes of Age E L E C T R I C A L E N G I N E E R I N G

t h a n to o u r o w n . T o see th is i n a scale of h i s to ry , w e reca l l t h a t w r i t t e n h i s to ry h a s a n a g e of p e r h a p s 300 g e n e r a t i o n s ; so t h a t o u r life s p a n is a b o u t o n e p e r c e n t of th is . T h e i n d u s t r i a l r e v o ­l u t i o n h a s t a k e n p l a c e in t h e last t e n of t h e 100 g e n e r ­a t ions of t h e C h r i s t i a n e r a .

U n t i l a b o u t 200 yea r s a g o t h e d e v e l o p m e n t of i n d u s t r y subs t an t i a l l y w a s r e l a t e d to t h e s imple ideas , i deas w h i c h w e r e r e a d i l y a p p a r e n t to t h e re la t ive ly u n t r a i n e d . T r a n s p o r t a t i o n a n d c o m m u ­n i c a t i o n d e p e n d e d w h o l l y o n t h e b e a s t of b u r d e n ( in­c l u d i n g t h e n a t u r a l p r o p u l s i v e p o w e r of m a n ) o r o n t h e w i n d . L i g h t a n d h e a t d e p e n d e d d i r ec t l y u p o n t h e s u n o r fire. I t is t r u e t h a t t h e r e w e r e c e r t a i n excep t i ons such as t h e m a n u f a c t u r e of g u n p o w d e r , w h i c h s t e m m e d f rom a l c h e m y , t h e f a the r of c h e m i s t r y ; b u t , o n t h e w h o l e , i n d u s t r y w a s n u r t u r e d o n ideas w h i c h d e p e n d e d o n t h e d a y - t o - d a y e x p e r i e n c e of t h e a v e r a g e m a n .

T h e n s u d d e n l y t h e r e e m e r g e d a n u m b e r of n e w indus t r i e s d r a w n f rom a n e w s o u r c e — a f o u n d a t i o n of sc ience a n d p h i l o s o p h y so c o m p l e x t h a t e v e n t h e n e e d for e a c h n e w i n d u s t r y p r o d u c e d w a s u n d r e a m e d of a few yea r s before . I n t h e h i s to ry of c u l t u r a l d e v e l o p ­m e n t , this n e w - f o u n d ab i l i ty to c o n t r o l c o m p l e x p h e n o m ­e n a a n d t u r n t h e m to useful e n d s o n a soc ie ty -wide scale b y prec i se o b s e r v a t i o n a n d c l ea r g e n e r a l i z a t i o n t h r o u g h t h e processes of logic seems c o m p a r a b l e o n l y to t h e d e v e l o p m e n t of m a n ' s ab i l i t y to t ransfe r i deas t h r o u g h c o m b i n a t i o n s of w r i t t e n w o r d s . T h e s e n e w indus t r i e s w e r e n o t on ly m u t u a l l y s u p p o r t i n g , b u t t h e y supp l i e d t h e m e a n s f rom w h i c h o t h e r s c o u l d g r o w . E v e n m o r e i m p o r t a n t , t h e y p r o v i d e d t h e tools w h i c h gave t h e scient is t m o r e c o n v e n i e n t access to t h e l imi t s of k n o w l e d g e , p e r m i t t i n g h i m to e x t e n d these l imi t s a t a n eve r - inc reas ing r a t e . I n t u r n , t h e k n o w l e d g e so a c q u i r e d a g a i n g e n e r a t e d a n d d e v e l o p e d i n d u s t r y . I n brief, tools m a k e tools .

T h i s process is a t r u l y r e g e n e r a t i v e o n e . I t is th is i n t e r a c t i o n of r e g e n e r a t i v e fo rm b e t w e e n sc ience a n d i n d u s t r y w h i c h has b r o u g h t a b o u t t h e a s t o u n d i n g progress of t h e pas t t en g e n e r a t i o n s . I n c o m m o n w i t h r e g e n e r a t i v e c i rcu i t s , h o w e v e r , s u c h p rogress c a n c o n ­t i n u e o n l y w h e n n o s a t u r a t i o n o r l i m i t a t i o n ar ises in a n y p a r t of t h e c i r cu i t ; a n d a l r e a d y in e lec t ron ics t h e r e a r e signs of s a t u r a t i o n in u n e x p e c t e d p l aces . R e d e s i g n of t h e c r i t i ca l p a r t s to h i g h e r l imi ts for t h e benef i t of t h e w h o l e of socie ty is a c h a l l e n g e to t h e i n g e n u i t y of t h e e n g i n e e r a n d indus t r i a l i s t .

I n a n e x a m i n a t i o n of these p o t e n t i a l l imi ts , o n e s h o u l d t u r n first t o t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s for r e s e a r c h a n d d e v e l o p ­m e n t . R e s e a r c h c a n b e def ined as t h e o r e t i c a l ana lys i s , exp lo ra t i on , a n d e x p e r i m e n t a t i o n , w i t h o u t c o m p l e t e l y def ined goals , d i r e c t e d to t h e inc rease of k n o w l e d g e a n d

Since t h e d i s c o v e r y o f t h e e l e c t r o n , j u s t 5 0 y e a r s a g o , e l e c t r o n i c s h a s e m e r g e d as a fu l l -fledged s c i e n c e a n d i n d u s t r y . H o w e v e r , w i t h m a t u r i t y , a l so h a s c o m e n e w r e s p o n s i ­bi l i t ies for c r e a t i v e v i s i o n a n d e n t e r p r i s e . W h e t h e r t h e c h a l l e n g e c a n b e m e t is d e ­p e n d e n t u p o n w h e t h e r r e s e a r c h a n d i n ­dus tr ia l g r o u p s c a n b e i n t e g r a t e d to p r o v i d e

t h e n e c e s s a r y in i t ia t ive a n d s u p p o r t .

w i t h it t h e p o w e r to c o n t r o l p h e n o m e n a . D e v e l o p m e n t is t h e ex t ens ion of t h e inves­t i ga t ive findings a n d theor ies of a scientific o r t e c h n i c a l n a t u r e i n t o p r a c t i c a l a p p l i ­c a t i o n for e x p e r i m e n t o r d e m o n s t r a t i o n p u rpose s in ­c l u d i n g c o n s t r u c t i o n a n d t es t ing of e x p e r i m e n t a l m o d e l s .

T h e g e n e r a l i t y of these def in i t ions s h o u l d b e e m p h a ­s ized. O f t e n d e v e l o p m e n t is m i s t a k e n for r e s e a r c h . A l a b o r a t o r y d e v o t e d t o d e v e l o p m e n t a l o n e t e n d s t o d e g e n e r a t e q u i c k l y a n d to lose c o n t a c t w i t h t h e b o u n d ­ar ies of k n o w l e d g e , a n d it is f rom these b o u n d a r i e s t h a t t h e m o r e useful ideas of ten a r e d r a w n . T h e l a b o r a t o r y m u s t h a v e e x p e r i m e n t a l i s t s w h o c r i t i ca l ly a n d a n a ­ly t ica l ly obse rve aspec t s of n a t u r a l p h e n o m e n a to disclose a n d classify t h e i r t r u e n a t u r e , t h u s b r i n g i n g to l igh t n e w k n o w l e d g e . I t m u s t h a v e t h e o r e t i c i a n s w h o , t h r o u g h e x a c t a p p l i c a t i o n of logic t o o u r k n o w l e d g e of n a t u r a l even t s , c a n g e n e r a l i z e a n d infer t h e u l t i m a t e conse­q u e n c e s , t h e r e b y e x t e n d i n g a n d p r e d i c t i n g t h e p o t e n t i a l b o u n d a r i e s of o b s e r v a t i o n a n d a p p l i c a t i o n . I t m u s t h a v e e n g i n e e r s of b o l d i m a g i n a t i o n a n d vis ion w h o c a n m o l d useful i deas i n t o p r o d u c t s o r a p p l i c a t i o n of sheer a r t i s t r y in c o n c e p t a n d des ign . F ina l l y , as these m e n a n d processes t o g e t h e r c a n g e n e r a t e n e w ideas a n d a p p l i c a t i o n s , t h e y m u s t w o r k in a n a t m o s p h e r e of f r e e d o m w h i c h e n c o u r a g e s fruitful t h o u g h t a n d a c h i e v e ­m e n t , a n d effective t r a n s l a t i o n of ideas i n t o fo rm for t h e g e n e r a l benef i t of socie ty .

I t is c l e a r t h a t , for o u r sys tem to b e t r u l y r e g e n e r a t i v e , t h e r e m u s t b e a m p l e a n d a m p l y t r a i n e d m i n d s , skil led, possessed of in i t i a t ive , a n d c a p a b l e of o r ig ina l , c r e a t i v e t h o u g h t . E q u a l l y t r u e , t h e r e m u s t b e o p p o r t u n i t y for these m i n d s t o i n i t i a t e a n d to c r e a t e . T h i s m e a n s t h a t t h e r e m u s t b e facil i t ies c o m m e n s u r a t e in q u a l i t y a n d s u p p l y w i t h t h e m i n d s t h a t a r e r e a d y to use t h e m . T h e o p p o r t u n i t y t h a t is offered in a free socie ty is a n i n d e x of t h e p o w e r t h a t wil l a r i se to u t i l i ze i t . A m e r i c a n h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n h a s d e m o n s t r a t e d t h a t , g iven p r o p e r o p p o r t u n i t y , it r e a d i l y c a n a c c o u n t for t h e r equ i s i t e a d v a n c e d t r a i n i n g . I n d u s t r y c a n , a n d does in m a n y ins t ances , s h a r e fully in t h e p rov i s ion of o p p o r t u n i t y for t h a t t r a i n i n g to b e p u t t o use . I n a p rogress ive a n d a d v a n c i n g society, t h e n e e d for e x p a n d i n g o p p o r t u n i t y does n o t cease . O n t h e c o n t r a r y , i t inc reases , a n d h e n c e it is essent ia l t h a t i n d u s t r y b e r e a d y to go b e y o n d t h e levels t h u s far r e a c h e d , a n d m a k e a v a i l a b l e m o r e w i d e l y a n d m o r e freely t h e facil i t ies v i t a l ly n e e d e d for t h e p r o p e r p u r s u i t of r e s e a r c h o n w h i c h i n d u s t r y itself d e p e n d s . T h u s t w o e n d s wil l b e s e r v e d — t h e o n e , t h e m a i n t e n a n c e of r e s e a r c h as a n essent ia l c o m p o n e n t of o u r socie ty ; t h e o t h e r , t h e c o n t i n u i n g v i t a l i z a t i o n a n d e x p a n s i o n of i n d u s t r y t h r o u g h t h e o p p o r t u n i t i e s o p e n e d u p b y r e s e a r c h .

J A N U A R Y 1 9 4 8 Berkner—Electronics Gomes of Age 3 3

I t is in te res t ing to see t h a t o u r forefathers u n d e r s t o o d these needs in a n impl i c i t sort of w a y . E v e n w h e n t h e y w e r e h e w i n g the i r fu tu re o u t of t he v i rg in l a n d , t h e y w e r e t a x i n g the i r h a r d - e a r n e d resources to es tab l i sh t he colleges a n d univers i t ies w h i c h h a v e p l a y e d so l a rge a p a r t in t h e d e v e l o p m e n t of t he U n i t e d S ta t e s . T h e y u n d e r s t o o d t h a t t h e fu ture welfare of t h e c o m m u n i t y d e p e n d e d u p o n the ex tens ion a n d i m p r o v e m e n t of its c u l t u r e a n d t echno logy .

R E S E A R C H A C O M M U N I T Y A F F A I R

T h e exis tence of a s o u n d a n d a d e q u a t e r e s e a r c h a n d d e v e l o p m e n t effort is of in te res t n o t on ly to t h e scientist , t h e eng inee r , o r t he d i r ec to r of i n d u s t r y , b u t it is a c o m m u n i t y affair. I t s benefi t is m e a s u r e d n o t a l o n e in t e r m s of t h e e m p l o y m e n t of its r e s e a r c h scientists a n d eng inee r s . A h u n d r e d t imes m o r e i m p o r t a n t is t h e genesis of n e w i n d u s t r y a n d of t h e c u l t u r a l a n d m a t e r i a l a d v a n t a g e s w h i c h flow f rom its p r e sence . I t h a s b e e n sa id t h a t e a c h r e s e a r c h w o r k e r g u a r a n t e e s t h e e m p l o y ­m e n t of 20 m e n . T o r e a p th is benefi t , t h e c o m m u n i t y a n d its i n d u s t r y m u s t t a k e a n ac t ive p a r t in t h e e s t a b ­l i s h m e n t of facilities for sc ience a d e q u a t e for its o w n welfare . T h e r e a r e l i te ra l ly d o z e n s of e x a m p l e s w h e r e w h o l e c o m m u n i t i e s h a v e r isen o n t h e s u p p o r t of a few m e n of sc ience a n d i n v e n t i o n . T h e fu tu re wel fare of these c o m m u n i t i e s d e p e n d s o n c o n t i n u e d e x p l o i t a t i o n of k n o w l e d g e a t a r a t e a d e q u a t e to m a i n t a i n a n d to inc rease e m p l o y m e n t b y p r o d u c t i o n of a c c e p t a b l e p r o d u c t s , for p rogress impl ies c h a n g e .

Progress in m o d e r n i n d u s t r y is d e p e n d e n t u p o n a d e ­q u a t e r e s e a r c h a n d d e v e l o p m e n t . I n d u s t r y r e a d i l y m u s t c o m p r e h e n d t h e m o s t a d v a n c e d ideas a n d a d d its o w n c rea t ive a r t i s t ry to m a i n t a i n its p r e - e m i n e n c e . W h e n some art if icial e c o n o m i c o r pol i t ica l fac tor interferes w i t h its n o r m a l p r o d u c t i o n , it m u s t be r e a d y to c r e a t e n e w a n d effective offshoots. Ab i l i t y to c h a n g e r equ i r e s " k n o w - h o w " w i t h i n t h e c o m m u n i t y , a r ea l c o m p r e h e n s i o n of t h ings as t h e y a r e a n d as t h e y p o ­ten t i a l ly cou l d b e . As e lec t ron ics is o n e of t h e essent ia l e l e m e n t s of so m u c h of sc ience a n d i n d u s t r y , c r e a t i v e e lec t ron ics r e s e a r c h is a n i m p o r t a n t necessi ty to a p r o ­gressive fu tu re .

D u r i n g t h e pas t w a r a g r o u p of e lec t ron ics m a n u ­fac turers f rom t h e C h i c a g o a r e a asked for a confe rence w i t h t h e S e c r e t a r y of t h e N a v y . T h e y p o i n t e d o u t t h a t t h e y h a d e n o r m o u s fac tory c a p a c i t y , a g o o d source of l a b o r , a n d p l e n t y of m a c h i n e r y . T h e y w e r e a n x i o u s to t h r o w m o r e of t he i r facilities i n to t h e w a r effort. B u t t h e b u l k of n e w e lec t ron ics business w a s g o i n g to firms i n t h e E a s t ! W h y ?

T h e r e w a s t r e m e n d o u s e v o l u t i o n in a p p l i c a t i o n a n d form of e l ec t ron ic e q u i p m e n t d u r i n g t h e w a r . T h i s was n o t a m a t t e r of w h i m — i t w a s t h e resu l t of t h e n e e d to m e e t a n d forestal l t h e e v o l u t i o n of e n e m y tac t i cs . T h e sou rce of th is n e w e q u i p m e n t w a s t h e l a b o r a t o r y w h e r e t h e scient is t a n d e n g i n e e r j o i n e d w i t h t h e t a c t i c i a n

a n d s t ra teg is t to devise t h e m o s t effective m e a n s of c o m b a t i n g e a c h n e w o r a n t i c i p a t e d t a c t i c . I t w a s a m a t t e r of necessi ty , t h e n , t h a t t h e A r m y a n d N a v y t u r n to o r g a n i z a t i o n s w h o s e r e s e a r c h a n d d e v e l o p m e n t l a b o r a t o r i e s h a d t h e c a p a c i t y , q u a l i t y , a n d v igo r t o p r o v i d e t h e so lu t ions n e e d e d , a n d u s u a l l y t h e p r o d u c t i o n c o n t r a c t s fol lowed. U n f o r t u n a t e l y for t h e e q u i t a b l e g e o g r a p h i c d i s t r i b u t i o n of s u c h c o n t r a c t s , t h e m a j o r i t y of a d e q u a t e i n d u s t r i a l e l ec t ron i c l a b o r a t o r y facilities w e r e a t t h a t t i m e in t h e Eas t .

H e r e , t h e n , is a specific e x a m p l e w h e r e t h e life of a c o m m u n i t y w a s affected adve r se ly b y a s h o r t a g e in r e s e a r c h a n d d e v e l o p m e n t . H e r e is a n e x a m p l e of s a t u r a t i o n in o u r r e g e n e r a t i v e sys tem of p rogress ive i n d u s t r y . C o n t i n u e d g r o w t h a n d wel fa re d e p e n d i m ­p o r t a n t l y o n r e n e w a l a n d e x p a n s i o n of i n d u s t r y t h r o u g h c o n s t a n t g e n e r a t i o n a n d a d v a n c e of i dea s . I t b e h o o v e s t h e e n g i n e e r , t h e b u s i n e s s m a n , a n d t h e f inanc ie r e a c h to p r o t e c t h is i n d u s t r y a n d his c o m m u n i t y , in p r o p o r t i o n to his bus iness a n d i n v e s t m e n t , w i t h t h e sa feguards of c r e a t i v e t h i n k i n g evo lved b y r e s e a r c h a n d i n v e n t i o n . S u p p o r t of r e s e a r c h is a n e c o n o m i c m a t t e r r e q u i r e d for t h e wel fare of t h e i n d u s t r y . B u t it is also a c u l t u r a l m a t t e r de se rv ing t h e s u p p o r t of t h e w h o l e c o m m u n i t y . I t s p l a n n i n g r e q u i r e s in i t i a t ive a n d effort f rom t h e f inancier , t h e e d u c a t o r , t h e profess ional m a n , a n d t h e m e r c h a n t a l ike . H e r e is n e e d e d t h e s a m e k i n d of fore­s ight d e m o n s t r a t e d b y t h e p i o n e e r s w h o t a x e d t h e m ­selves u n d e r t h e m o s t a d v e r s e c o n d i t i o n s t o es tab l i sh o u r un ivers i t i es .

N E E D F O R G R E A T S Y S T E M S

T h e r e is ye t a f u r t h e r c h a l l e n g e w h i c h t h e e l ec t ron ics profession a n d i n d u s t r y face as e l ec t ron ics c o m e s of a g e , t h e c h a l l e n g e t o p r o d u c e g r e a t sys tems w h i c h wil l m e e t n e e d s of v i t a l i m p o r t a n c e t o t h e e c o n o m i c wel fare a n d secur i ty of t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s . T h i s c h a l l e n g e is a r ea l test of t h e i n d u s t r y ' s m a t u r i t y .

D u r i n g its g r o w i n g o r f o r m a t i v e yea r s , t h e e l ec t ron ics i n d u s t r y h a s d o n e n o t a b l e w o r k in dev i s ing sys tems, r a d i o t r a n s m i t t i n g a n d r ece iv ing sys tems, s imp le r a d a r sys tems, a n d t h e l ike. T r a d i t i o n a l l y , sys tems h a v e b e e n p r o v i d e d f rom t h e r e s e a r c h a n d d e v e l o p m e n t l a b o r a t o r i e s of i n d u s t r y a n d , m o r e r ecen t ly , f rom those of t h e u n i ­versi t ies , a lso. I n t h e l a b o r a t o r y , t h e scient is t a n d e n g i n e e r d r a w t h e g e n e r a l r e q u i r e m e n t s for sys tem p e r f o r m a n c e in t h e l igh t of a d v a n c e d po ten t i a l i t i e s a n d t h e n p r o c e e d to d r a w t h e g e n e r a l p l a n s for des ign a n d p e r f o r m a n c e of t h e e l e m e n t s of t h e sys tem. T h e n a r e r e q u i r e d t h e r e sea rch , t h e d e v e l o p m e n t , a n d t h e e n g i ­n e e r i n g t o p r o d u c e these e l e m e n t s , e a c h of w h i c h m u s t m e e t a specified m i n i m u m of p e r f o r m a n c e , so t h a t i t successfully m a y c o n t r i b u t e its r e q u i r e d p a r t in t h e i n t e g r a t e d sys tem. F ina l ly , t h e e l e m e n t s a r e a s s e m b l e d o n e b y o n e i n t o t h e sys tem, w h i c h is t e s ted as a u n i t . H e r e a d j u s t m e n t s a n d c o m p r o m i s e s a r e m a d e in t h e l igh t of t h e e x p e r i e n c e a c q u i r e d in t h e b u i l d i n g of e a c h

3 4 Berkner—Electronics Comes of Age E L E C T R I C A L E N G I N E E R I N G

e l e m e n t , e x p e r i e n c e w h i c h t r ans l a t e s t h e des ign est i ­m a t e s i n t o rea l i ty of over -a l l p e r f o r m a n c e .

T h e systems e n g i n e e r i n g of e a r l y te levis ion is a n o u t ­s t a n d i n g e x a m p l e . 1 U n d e r t h e l e a d e r s h i p of D o c t o r H e r b e r t E . Ives , t h e b r o a d des ign of a n a c h i e v a b l e television sys tem w a s l a id d o w n in l igh t of t h e m o s t a d v a n c e d t heo re t i c a l a n d i n s t r u m e n t a l l i m i t a t i o n s of t h e t i m e . T h e n p a r t s w e r e " f a r m e d o u t " to qua l i f i ed g r o u p s of t h e Bell T e l e p h o n e L a b o r a t o r i e s . W h e r e d o u b t exis ted as t o t h e feasibil i ty of a c r i t i ca l e le­m e n t of t h e sys tem, m o r e t h a n o n e a p p r o a c h t o a so lu t i on w a s i n i t i a t ed . T h i s a p p r o a c h also p r o ­v i d e d for t h e u l t i m a t e c o m p a r i s o n of t h e efficacy of a l t e r n a t e des igns . T h e efficiency of th is m e t h o d w a s d e m o n s t r a t e d b y t h e o u t s t a n d i n g success of t h e W a s h i n g t o n - N e w Y o r k television t r ansmiss ion in 1 9 2 7 b y b o t h r a d i o a n d wi re - l ine .

T h i s p a t t e r n for sys tems e n g i n e e r i n g successfully w a s r e p e a t e d a g a i n a n d a g a i n d u r i n g t h e w a r , w h e r e h i g h p e r f o r m a n c e a n d speed of a c h i e v e m e n t of n e w elec­t r o n i c devices o r of s m a l l e l ec t ron ic systems w e r e cr i t ­ical . P r o b a b l y t h e m o s t r e c e n t a n d o u t s t a n d i n g e x a m p l e w a s in t h e p r o d u c t i o n of t h e a t o m i c b o m b in w h i c h e lec t ron ics h a s p l a y e d a n i m p o r t a n t ro le .

T h e s e a r e e x a m p l e s w h e r e t h e i n d u s t r y h a s b e e n o u t s t a n d i n g l y successful in p r o d u c i n g sys tems w i t h i n t h e c a p a c i t y of t h e ex is t ing i n d u s t r i a l o r g a n i z a t i o n . Bu t these ve ry successes h a v e g e n e r a t e d t h e n e e d for e v e n g rea t e r c o n t r i b u t i o n s . R e a s o n i n g f rom p a s t p e r ­f o r m a n c e , society conf iden t ly expec t s t h e m . F o r i n ­s t ance , cons ide r t h e fields of a i r n a v i g a t i o n a n d f re ight d i s p a t c h i n g . I t is r e a s o n a b l e to e x p e c t t h a t t h e p r o b ­lems in b o t h a r e a s s h o u l d y ie ld to sys tems so lu t ions p r e ­d o m i n a n t l y e l ec t ron ic in n a t u r e .

T h e r e h a v e b e e n t r e m e n d o u s s t r ides t o w a r d s so lu t ion of i n d i v i d u a l e l e m e n t s of t h e p r o b l e m of a i r n a v i g a t i o n : t h e I L S ( i n s t r u m e n t l a n d i n g sys tem) of t h e Civi l A e r o ­n a u t i c s A u t h o r i t y ; t h e O C A ( g r o u n d - c o n t r o l a p p r o a c h ) ; m u l t i c h a n n e l ve ry -h igh - f r equency c o m m u n i c a t i o n ; a n d a d o z e n o the r s of e q u a l o r g r e a t e r i m p o r t a n c e . M a n y a p p l i c a b l e e l e m e n t s h a v e b e e n c r e a t e d w i t h o u t t h e i r a p p l i c a t i o n to a i r n a v i g a t i o n b e i n g r ea l i zed i m m e ­d ia te ly . Never the less , o n e m a y q u e s t i o n w h e t h e r a rea l ly sat isfactory sys tem is in s ight , desp i t e t h e fact t h a t m a n y bel ieve t h a t t h e e l e m e n t s of a sa t i s fac tory

sys tem a r e a t h a n d o r a c h i e v a b l e u n d e r a p r o p e r l y o r g a n i z e d sys tems a t t a c k . W h i l e t h e p r e s e n t s i t ua t i on is difficult, t h e f u t u r e p r o m i s e s a still g r e a t e r cha l l enge w h e n h i g h e r s p e e d a i rc ra f t w i t h l o w e r fuel rese rve , c o u n t e d i n m i n u t e s , wi l l b e c o m i n g i n t o use .

T h i s is a n e x a m p l e of a r ea l ly b ig sys tems p r o b l e m for i t m u s t b e c o n c e i v e d a n d o p e r a t e d o n a n a t i o n a l scale . T h e wel fa re a n d fu tu r e d e v e l o p m e n t of w h o l e indus t r i e s d e p e n d u p o n its sa t i s fac tory so lu t ion . I t is

th i s k i n d of respons ib i l i ty w h i c h e l ec t ron ics m u s t face as i t a r r i ves a t m a t u r i t y . H a v e w e evo lved t h e m e a n s for m e e t i n g s u c h p r o b l e m s a n d o n a r e a s o n a b l e t i m e scale?

T H E C O M M I T T E E P R O C E D U R E

W h e n p r o b l e m s of n a ­t i ona l scope ar ise , t h e y often e x t e n d b e y o n d t h e r e sources of a s ingle c o r p o r a t i o n . A c c o r d i n g l y , t h e c o m m i t t e e p r o c e d u r e h a s b e e n evo lved . T h e c o m m i t t e e c a n b r i n g t o g e t h e r t h e d ive r se p o i n t s of v i e w r e p r e s e n t i n g diff'erent a spec t s of t h e p r o b l e m to e n s u r e t h a t e a c h s ignif icant face t is c o n s i d e r e d ; i t c a n r e c o g n i z e t h e feasibi l i ty of a so lu t ion o r so lu t ions a l o n g

g e n e r a l i z e d l ines ; it c a n d e t e r m i n e t h e p r o b a b l e l i m i t a ­t ions o n t h e severa l so lu t ions ; a n d it c a n a d v o c a t e t h e m e a n s w h e r e b y t h e p r o b l e m c a n b e f o r m u l a t e d i n d e t a i l a n d t h e so lu t ion p rocessed .

Because t h e c o m m i t t e e i d e a is so effective, c o m m o n sense d e m a n d s t h a t w e d o n o t a b u s e a n d v i t i a t e i t b y s u p e r i m p o s i n g o p e r a t i n g func t ions u p o n i t . I t is easy a n d i n v i t i n g to ask t h e c o m m i t t e e t o r e c o m m e n d o r t o p r o d u c e t h e fo rm of t h e sys tems so lu t ion , b u t w e m u s t look b e y o n d t h e c o m m i t t e e s t e p . W h a t , t h e n , a r e t h e r e q u i r e m e n t s w h i c h m u s t b e fulfilled in dev i s ing a n d a c h i e v i n g a sys tems so lu t ion t o n e w a n d g r e a t p r o b l e m s ?

F i rs t , t h e p rocess ing of a sys tems so lu t ion r e q u i r e s c e n t r a l i z e d respons ib i l i ty a n d a u t h o r i t y t o m a k e d e ­cisions, t h a t is, i n t h e sense of financial a n d p r o d u c t respons ib i l i ty . S e c o n d , t h e sys tems so lu t ion r e q u i r e s c e n t r a l i z e d t e c h n i c a l d i r e c t i o n of a c a l i b e r i n p r o p o r t i o n to t h e i m p o r t a n c e of t h e p r o b l e m . T h i r d , t h e sys tems p r o b l e m m u s t b e d iges t ed b y t h e e x p e r i m e n t a l i s t , t h e o r e ­t i c i an , a n d e n g i n e e r c o l l a b o r a t i n g in t h e l a b o r a t o r y so t h a t t h e y m a y p r o d u c e a n a d v a n c e d a n d c r e a t i v e f o u n d a t i o n o n w h i c h t h e d e t a i l e d so lu t ion is c o n c e i v e d . F o u r t h , t h e d e t a i l e d sys tems so lu t ion c a n b e f o r m u l a t e d o n l y in t h e l a b o r a t o r y w h e r e p o t e n t i a l p e r f o r m a n c e a n d

Westinghouse photo

as e lec tronics c o m e s of a g e i ts f u t u r e i s b r i g h t . . . "

J A N U A R Y 1 9 4 8 Berkner—Electronics Comes oj Age 35

feasibi l i ty of a n y idea o r dev ice c a n b e tes ted a n d assessed finally a n d a u t h o r i t a t i v e l y b y t h e m e n m o s t qua l i f i ed to d o so w i t h t h e necessa ry facilit ies a t h a n d . Fif th, t h e sys tem m u s t b e a s sembled , a n d t h e final c o m p r o m i s e s o r subs t i t u t i ons m a d e , af ter t h e r e a l i z a b l e p e r f o r m a n c e of e a c h e l e m e n t h a s b e e n assessed, b y t h e m e n respons ib le for t h e sys tems des ign a n d t h e e l e m e n t s thereof, a n d , a b o v e al l , r espons ib le for its u l t i m a t e p e r f o r m a n c e . S ix th , t h e sys tem m u s t b e tes ted t h o r ­o u g h l y in p a r t a n d in w h o l e u n d e r t h e c o n t r o l of t h e des igners o n a n a d e q u a t e test r a n g e as a p a r t o r r ea son ­a b l e facsimile of t he o p e r a t i o n for w h i c h t h e sys tem is des igned . F ina l ly , b u t b y n o m e a n s last , t h e r e m u s t b e a powerfu l i ncen t ive to e a r l y a c h i e v e m e n t s u c h as n a t i o n a l secur i ty o r t h e profi t m o t i v e .

O t h e r g r o u p s h a v e faced s imi l a r p r o b l e m s w i t h l a r g e systems, a n d a brief e x a m i n a t i o n of t h e i r a p p r o a c h e s s h o u l d b e prof i t ab le .

A n o u t s t a n d i n g e x a m p l e is t h e t e l e p h o n e i n d u s t r y , w h i c h r ep resen t s a spec ia l ized field of e lec t ron ics a n d w h i c h has evo lved in to a m o n o p o l y u n d e r g o v e r n m e n t s a n c t i o n a n d r e g u l a t i o n . T h e n e e d for this m o n o p o l y o r its eflScacy to p r o v i d e n a t i o n - w i d e t e l e p h o n e c o m ­m u n i c a t i o n se ldom is q u e s t i o n e d in v iew of its effective­ness a n d its e x t e n t w h e n c o m p a r e d w i t h t h e sys tems of a n y o t h e r n a t i o n . T h e t e l e p h o n e i n d u s t r y , s u p p o r t e d b y t r e m e n d o u s l a b o r a t o r y facilities, is evo lv ing its sys­t e m des ign w i t h i n t h e n a t i o n - w i d e o p e r a t i n g n e t w o r k .

A second e x a m p l e is t h e e lec t r ic p o w e r i n d u s t r y . A s t h e n e e d for systems e n g i n e e r i n g a rose in t h e e a r l y h i s to ry of t h e i n d u s t r y , c o n s u l t i n g e n g i n e e r i n g firms w e r e o r g a n i z e d to des ign t h e sys tems. B u t as t h e size of t h e sys tems g rew, t h e e q u i p m e n t i n d u s t r y w a s i n t e ­g r a t e d i n t o l a r g e r un i t s p r o p o r t i o n a l to t h e size of t h e i r p r o b l e m s a n d t h e systems e n g i n e e r i n g g r a d u a l l y w a s t a k e n o v e r b y t h e w h o l e i n d u s t r y itself t h r o u g h close c o l l a b o r a t i o n b e t w e e n t h e m a n u f a c t u r e r a n d t h e cus ­t o m e r for t h e sys tems, w h i c h w e r e t h e p u b l i c u t i l i t ies . T h e o r ig ina l consu l t i ng firms v e e r e d off to t h e field of c o n s t r u c t i o n a n d o p e r a t i o n .

A t h i r d e x a m p l e is t h e e n g i n e e r i n g a n d c o n s t r u c t i o n of t h e H o o v e r D a m . N o single c o m p a n y w a s wi l l ing to a s s u m e this e n o r m o u s u n d e r t a k i n g , so t h a t n o b ids w e r e rece ived u n t i l t h e o r g a n i z a t i o n of t h e " s ix c o m ­p a n i e s " c o m p o s e d of t h e la rges t e n g i n e e r i n g a n d c o n ­s t ruc t ion c o m p a n i e s in t h e field. W i t h t h e i r c o m b i n e d resources , t h e j o b w a s d o n e q u i c k l y a n d s u p e r b l y .

N E E D F O R I N T E G R A T I O N

T h e e x a m p l e s c i t ed seem to d e m o n s t r a t e t w o th ings , first, t h a t i n d u s t r y c a n d o a b i g n e w sys tems j o b if p r o p e r l y o r g a n i z e d a n d , second , t h a t it m u s t i n t e g r a t e w h e n t h e size of t h e j o b to b e d o n e exceeds t h e resources of its i n d i v i d u a l e l e m e n t s . T h i s is t h e r ea l c r u x of t h e m a t t e r . T o face cons t ruc t ive ly t h e g r e a t sys tems p r o b l e m s w h i c h h a v e c o m e a b o u t w i t h t h e a t t a i n m e n t of m a t u r i t y t h e e lec t ron ics i n d u s t r y m u s t t ake t h e neces ­

sa ry s teps ,to m o b i l i z e i ts b r a i n s , i ts facili t ies, a n d its m a n p o w e r , a n d t o b r i n g t o g e t h e r t h e i n d i v i d u a l c o m ­p o n e n t s r e q u i r e d for a n a d m i r a b l e so lu t ion , a l l w i t h i n free e n t e r p r i s e , to ge t e a c h j o b d o n e .

U n q u e s t i o n a b l y , s u c h a n e v o l u t i o n i n o r g a n i z a t i o n wil l pose a n u m b e r of p a t e n t p r o b l e m s . I t is i m p o r t a n t t h a t t h e i n t e g r i t y of o u r p a t e n t sys t em b e p r e s e r v e d so t h a t d e v e l o p m e n t a n d i n v e n t i o n r ece ive t h e e n c o u r a g e ­m e n t a n d s u p p o r t n e e d e d b y a p rogress ive n a t i o n . B u t to r e t a i n these a d v a n t a g e s , p a r t i c u l a r l y w h e n o r g a n i z i n g for g r e a t sys tems p r o b l e m s , i n d u s t r y m u s t t a k e t h e in i t i a t ive to g a i n t h e fullest v a l u e i m p l i c i t i n t h e A m e i i c a n t r a d i t i o n . I t is d o u b t f u l w h e t h e r a n y o n e c o m p a n y ho lds t h e p a t e n t s necessa ry to t h e so lu t ion of o u r g r ea t e s t e lec t ron ics sys tems p r o b l e m s . T h i s fact m a y l e a d t o a w k w a r d a n d ar t i f ic ial so lu t ions b u i l t a r o u n d p a t e n t s he ld b y i n d i v i d u a l i n d u s t r i a l g r o u p s , a n d often t h e offering of a n u m b e r of e q u a l l y a w k w a r d a n d i n a d e ­q u a t e so lu t ions b y c o m p e t i n g g r o u p s . T h e j o i n i n g of these ideas a n d devices t o m e e t a specific p r o b l e m g r e a t l y w o u l d e n h a n c e t h e p r o b a b i l i t y a n d effectiveness of so lu t ion .

T h e r e a r e severa l w a y s t o m e e t th is issue. F o r e x a m p l e , a p l a n of full p a r t i c i p a t i o n — a n o p e n poo l of e l ec t ron ic p a t e n t s — m i g h t b e f o r m e d u n d e r t h e ausp ices of a n i n d u s t r y c o m m i t t e e w h i c h d e t e r m i n e s fair , y e t s t i m u l a t i n g , roya l t i e s w i t h t h e p r iv i l ege of a p p e a l to t h e c o u r t s i n e v e n t of d i s p u t e . T h i s specific p r o p o s a l is n o t i m p o r t a n t w i t h i n itself, n o r , in fact , is a n y i n d i v i d u a l p l a n for i m p l e m e n t a t i o n . T h e i m p o r t a n t p o i n t is t h a t i n d u s t r y itself s h o u l d t a k e t h e i n i t i a t i ve t o c r e a t e t h e pos i t ive m e a s u r e s n e e d e d t o m a r s h a l l its full s t r e n g t h to m e e t m a j o r sys tems p r o b l e m s a n d , a t t h e s a m e t i m e , t o m e e t its r e l a t e d respons ib i l i t i es in m a i n t e n a n c e of free e n t e r p r i s e a n d fair c o m p e t i t i o n .

T h e " a i r - n a v i g a t i o n " p r o b l e m w a s discussed in p r e v i o u s p a r a g r a p h s , b u t p e r h a p s i n t i t l ing th is p r o b l e m t h e so lu t ion h a s b e e n r e s t r i c t ed t o less t h a n t h e n a t i o n a l n e e d . F o r e x a m p l e , w e n e e d a c o n s t a n t l y i m p r o v e d a i r - w a r n i n g n e t w o r k as a m e a s u r e of n a t i o n a l defense . O n e wel l m i g h t ask w h e t h e r t h e a i r - n a v i g a t i o n p r o b l e m a n d t h e a i r - w a r n i n g p r o b l e m a r e n o t so closely i n t e g r a t e d as to y ie ld to a c o m m o n so lu t ion . F u r t h e r , o n e wel l m i g h t ask w h e t h e r o u r n a t i o n a l e c o n o m y c a n s u p p o r t t w o s e p a r a t e sys tems, e a c h o n a n a d e q u a t e sca le .

H e r e is a r e a l p r o b l e m for a c o m m i t t e e , i n a s m u c h as , first of a l l , some r ea l ly bas ic n a t i o n a l issues m u s t b e e x a m i n e d cr i t ica l ly . I n th is e x a m i n a t i o n t h e c o m m i t t e e m u s t a s semble a n d e v a l u a t e t h e c o n t r i b u t i n g e l e m e n t s w h i c h c o m p r i s e t h e w h o l e p r o b l e m . As a s t ep t o w a r d so lu t ion , a c o m m i t t e e , for e x a m p l e , m i g h t r e c o m m e n d t h e o r g a n i z a t i o n of a " s ix c o m p a n i e s " w i t h n a t i o n a l s anc t i on , s u p p o r t , a n d r e g u l a t i o n , if th i s seems a n a p p r o p r i a t e a n d effective m e a s u r e t o a c h i e v e t h e des i r ed e n d . H o w e v e r , a c o m m i t t e e s h o u l d n o t b e ove r ­b u r d e n e d n o r its p res t ige a n d effectiveness d i m i n i s h e d b y a sk ing i t to a s s u m e respons ib i l i ty for sys tems p l a n n i n g

36 Berkner—Electronics Comes of Age E L E C T R I C A L E N G I N E E R I N G

a n d des ign w h i c h s h o u l d b e u n d e r t a k e n b y a m a t u r e i n d u s t r y p r o p e r l y o r g a n i z e d to m e e t th is r espons ib i l i ty .

T h e r e is a n a t u r a l t e n d e n c y to look to t h e g o v e r n m e n t for t h e l e a d e r s h i p in a t t a c k i n g s u c h p r o b l e m s as these g r e a t sys tems p r o b l e m s so often invo lve a l a r g e p a r t of t h e n a t i o n a l in te res t . T h i s t e n d e r l y g r e w s t r o n g e r d u r i n g t h e w a r , w h e n sys tems effort w a s d i r e c t e d s u b ­s t an t i a l ly to t h e service of t h e A r m e d Forces . B u t t h e r e is obv ious d a n g e r in too m u c h d e p e n d e n c e of th is k i n d , for often t h e g o v e r n m e n t is respons ive t o g r e a t n e e d s on ly after t h e y h a v e b e c o m e c r i t i ca l . I n d u s t r y h a s a r ea l o p p o r t u n i t y to p o i n t t h e w a y b y seizing t h e in i t i a ­t ive in r e c o g n i z i n g a n d solv ing p r o b l e m s before t h e y r e a c h t h e cr i t ica l s t age . I n fact , o n e m i g h t say t h a t t h e r ea l m e a s u r e of free e n t e r p r i s e in a n y n a t i o n is its ab i l i t y to l e a d t h e n a t i o n t o c o m p e t e n t a n d l a s t i ng so lu t ions of its g r e a t sys tems p r o b l e m s — s o l u t i o n s f rom w h i c h t h e n a t i o n a c q u i r e s its p r e - e m i n e n c e a n d p res t ige .

P R O B L E M O F F R E I G H T D I S P A T C H I N G

T h e r e a r e o t h e r sys tems p r o b l e m s w h i c h , w h i l e n o t of a n a t u r e to l e a d to g o v e r n m e n t in te res t , a r e of r e a l s ignif icance in s h a p i n g t h e n a t i o n ' s fu tu re . C o n s i d e r t h e p r o b l e m s of t h e m o v e m e n t of f re ight . G e n e r a l l y , u p o n s t a r t i n g a f re ight s h i p m e n t , n o o n e k n o w s e x a c t l y w h e r e t h a t s h i p m e n t is u n t i l it a r r ives a t t h e m a r s h a l l i n g y a r d a t i ts d e s t i n a t i o n . T h e r e a r e , of cour se , s o m e excep t ions , b u t these a r e n o t t h e r u l e . U n d o u b t e d l y , n o o n e is m o r e k e e n l y a w a r e of this p r o b l e m t h a n t h e r a i lways themse lves . B u t t h e r a i lways c a n n o t b e i n t i m a t e l y a w a r e of t h e po ten t i a l i t i e s of e lec t ron ics w h i c h c o u l d b e b r o u g h t to b e a r o n th is p r o b l e m . N o r c a n t h e e lec t ron ics i n d u s t r y a l o n e fully a p p r e c i a t e t h e p r o b l e m s of f re ight h a n d l i n g a n d f re ight d i s p a t c h i n g w h i c h t h e r a i lways p r e s e n t l y face . Neve r the l e s s , o n e cou ld i m a g i n e a n a t i o n a l sys tem of f re ight d i s p a t c h i n g a n d r o u t i n g , l a rge ly e l ec t ron ic i n n a t u r e , t o p r o v i d e freight m o v e m e n t b y t h e m o s t e x p e d i t i o u s r o u t e a n d to p r o v i d e m o r e u n i f o r m l o a d i n g in o u r t r a n s p o r t a t i o n sys tem. S u c h a sys tems d e v e l o p m e n t s h o u l d m a k e a subs t an t i a l i m p r o v e m e n t i n o u r e c o n o m y a n d the re fo re shou ld b e p rof i t ab le to b o t h r a i l r o a d a n d c u s t o m e r . I n fact, a c o m p r e h e n s i v e sys tem m i g h t e m b r a c e al l forms of f re ight h a n d l i n g .

T h i s e x a m p l e of t h e n e e d for f re ight d i s p a t c h i n g systems is r e p r e s e n t a t i v e of a w h o l e g r o u p of g r e a t systems in w h i c h e lec t ron ics c a n u n d e r t a k e a v i t a l ro l e . T h e y a r e often systems w h i c h invo lve t h e i n t e g r a t i o n of t h e " k n o w - h o w " of a few o r of m a n y indus t r i e s a n d the o r g a n i z a t i o n of essent ia l e l e m e n t s of e a c h to m e e t fully t h e responsibi l i t ies t h a t a r e e n t a i l e d b y t h e p r o b l e m . S ince e lec t ron ics h a s c o m e of age , i t s h o u l d a s s u m e t h e in i t i a t ive in e n c o u r a g i n g its p e c u l i a r so lu t ions a n d i n o r g a n i z i n g to ef fectuate these so lu t ions , a n d it m u s t b e p r e p a r e d to j o i n h a n d s w i t h o t h e r i ndus t r i e s to d o t h e j o b . T h e n a t u r e of j o i n t r espons ib i l i ty is m u c h t h e s a m e as t h a t w h i c h h a s d e v e l o p e d i n t h e e lec t r i ca l

i n d u s t r y w h e r e t h e m a n u f a c t u r e r a n d t h e c u s t o m e r i ndus t r i e s h a v e j o i n e d to p r o d u c e t h e a d v a n c e .

T h e discuss ion, t h u s far , h a s c o n s i d e r e d t h e ques t i on " H o w c a n a g r e a t sys t em b e d e s i g n e d , h o w c a n its e l e m e n t s b e i n t e g r a t e d i n t o a w o r k i n g sys tem w h i c h wil l m e e t t h e d ive r se r e q u i r e m e n t s w h e n o p e r a t e d o n a n a t i o n a l s c a l e ? " A c o r o l l a r y q u e s t i o n also m u s t b e r a i s e d : " H o w c a n th i s i n t e g r a t i o n b e e f fec tua ted , so t h a t t h e o ld is a b s o r b e d i n t h e n e w w i t h n o loss i n u l t i m a t e effect iveness?" W h i l e t h e q u e s t i o n c a n n o t b e a n s w e r e d h e r e , i t ra ises a p o i n t w o r t h y of e m p h a s i s .

W e often h e a r of " r e v o l u t i o n a r y i d e a s , " b u t i t is difficult t o c o n c e i v e t h e r e a l i t y of a s i t u a t i o n in w h i c h w e c h a n g e f rom t h e o ld t o t h e n e w in a d a y , a m o n t h , o r e v e n a y e a r . R e v o l u t i o n f rom o n e sys tem to a n o t h e r is b l o c k e d b y m a n y t h i n g s ; b y ex is t ing i n v e s t m e n t , b y difficulties of p r o d u c t i o n , b y cost of c a r r y i n g t h e inves t ­m e n t of c o m p o n e n t s of t h e r e v o l u t i o n a r y sys tem u n t i l a fictitious " R " d a y , b y i n s t a l l a t i on t i m e , a n d , m o r e i m p o r t a n t t h a n a l l of these , b y t h e necessi ty for t r a i n i n g of t h o u s a n d s of p e r s o n n e l w h o m u s t l e a r n t o o p e r a t e t h e n e w sys tem w i t h r e a s o n a b l e p rec i s ion t o m a k e i t effec­t ive . O u r socie ty a n d e c o n o m y wi l l n o t p e r m i t r e t r o ­gress ion of p e r f o r m a n c e , e v e n w h e n i t m a y seem to s o m e a d e s i r a b l e s t ep in t r a n s i t i o n t o w a r d s u p e r i o r p e r ­f o r m a n c e i n t h e f u t u r e . T h e p rogress t o n e w systems m u s t b e c o n c e i v e d as s teps i n e v o l u t i o n , n o t a s a r evo lu ­t i o n — a n a d d i t i o n a l h e a v y l o a d o n t h e sys tems des igner .

T h e c r e a t i o n of t h e r e a l l y l a r g e a n d i m p o r t a n t t h ings of t h e fu tu re , t hose t h i n g s w h i c h r e q u i r e ex tens ive sys­t e m s t h i n k i n g a n d d e v e l o p m e n t , is d e p e n d e n t o n a d e ­q u a t e in i t i a t ive a n d s u p p o r t b y sufficiently i n t e g r a t e d r e s e a r c h a n d i n d u s t r i a l g r o u p s . I n a c o u n t r y w h e r e p r i v a t e e n t e r p r i s e is d o m i n a n t , i t s h o u l d t a k e t h e l e a d . I n fact , t h e m e a s u r e of free e n t e r p r i s e is i ts ab i l i t y t o exerc ise th i s l e a d e r s h i p .

T h i s is a r e a l c h a l l e n g e . I n d u s t r y m u s t n o t look to t h e g o v e r n m e n t t o tell i ts e n g i n e e r s w h a t t o d o n e x t b u t s h o u l d p r o d u c e , o n its o w n in i t i a t i ve , so lu t ions w h i c h a r e so a d e q u a t e , so e l e g a n t , a n d so i m p e l l i n g t h a t t h e n a t i o n is l ed b y shee r force of logic t o t h e i r a d o p t i o n . I t s m e m b e r s m u s t g e t t o g e t h e r hones t l y t o poo l t h e i r b r a i n s a n d resources t o t h e e x t e n t r e q u i r e d b y t h e j o b , r e c o g n i z i n g t h a t congres s iona l s a n c t i o n a n d g o v e r n m e n t r e g u l a t i o n m a y b e a n e v e n t u a l i t y b e c a u s e of t h e n a t i o n a l scope of t h e p r o b l e m s . I t m u s t r e c o g n i z e a n d f r a m e i ts p r o b l e m s c lea r ly , a n d i t m u s t p r o v i d e s o u n d so lu t ions w h i c h wi l l b e of t h e g r e a t e s t benef i t t o society . T h i s is still poss ib le for r e s e a r c h a n d i n d u s t r y in t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s .

I t w o u l d seem, t h e n , t h a t as e l ec t ron ic s c o m e s of a g e , i ts f u tu re is b r i g h t a n d its po t en t i a l i t i e s u n l i m i t e d if i t m e e t s these respons ib i l i t i es for c o n s t a n t se l f - renewal a n d for t h e c r e a t i v e vis ion, e n t e r p r i s e , a n d in i t i a t ive w h i c h a l w a y s h a v e c h a r a c t e r i z e d A m e r i c a n i n d u s t r y .

R E F E R E N C E

1. Bell SysUm Technical Journal (New York, N. Y.), October 1927.

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