During the pandemic, this project served several functions. It engaged participants in a research registry; collected data about older Black adults’ experiences during Covid-19; and provided resource lists tailored specifically to address various needs. HBEC staff, CAB members and the university’s community engagement team all played vital roles in making it possible.
Telephone History
The printing press was an incredible invention of all time, yet was quickly overshadowed by telegraphs that enabled instantaneous communication over long distances. Telephones also have had an impactful but more intimate impact than their predecessor.
Early telephones were large and hung from walls. Over time, however, they became smaller and more portable, often known as candlestick telephones due to their shape resembling one. Their bases contained the bell, induction coil, battery pack and more – eliminating the need for separate ringer boxes and making it less likely that an accidentally left telephone would remain “off the hook”.
Alexander Graham Bell is often given credit for inventing the telephone, yet other innovators had long prior worked on similar devices. Antonio Meucci developed one in 1849 while Charles Bourseul produced one similar to Bell’s later on in 1854.
Telephone Technology
At its core, a telephone translates complex soundwaves into electrical signals for transmission, then converts those signals back into audible speech for reception. Since Bell first developed working telephones over 100 years ago, their use has been refined greatly in numerous ways.
At first, signal-carrying technologies consisted of twisted pair copper wires connected by subscriber lines to one or more pairs; as networks became larger and long distance calls became increasingly frequent, Bell Labs developed improved signal-carrying technologies.
For instance, in the 1930s a candlestick telephone base was introduced that combined transmitter and receiver functions, making touch-tone signaling possible and eliminating separate ringer boxes. Furthermore, touch-tone dialing became widespread. Up until 1970 most people didn’t own their telephones; rather they were leased from local phone monopolies designed for efficiency rather than consumer fashion; with competitive telecom starting with Bell System breakup in 1984 this transition to digital signals was greatly expedited.
Telephone Networks
Telephone networks provide voice communication. They use circuit switching networks with twisted pair cables connecting callers with receivers through exchanges, as well as data signals.
At its upper layers, networks utilize various protocols. These include user ports (TUP), signaling connection control point (SCCP), and transaction capabilities application port (TCAP).
In the late 1800s, commercialized telephone networks first emerged. At first known as POTS – or Plain Old Telephone System – using analog signals for connections – it expanded with copper wires, undersea cables, cellular networks and satellite systems. Now however, VoIP technology is being adopted more and more because it’s more effective, reliable, cheaper than its predecessor as well as secure. Consequently more people are choosing it!
