Philo T. Farnsworth has the unfortunate distinction of one who has done great good and had the thunder stolen from him. In the documentary we watched in class before spring break, we learned about his life as a genius farmer and his subsequent invention of the electronic television. The young inventor had little money, fewer compatriots, and competition from the giant RCA, but what he lacked in resources he more than made up for in talent.
The film told of his dedication to his work, which is evidenced by his choice to remain in the lab instead of attending his son’s funeral. While this led to some marital problems, Farnsworth and his team eventually realized the goal of creating the television and screened it for a small but excited audience in Philadelphia in 1928.
Farnsworth’s decline began when his competitor, Vladimir Zworykin, visited him posing as an investor. The man then sent the concepts back to his company (Westinghouse in Pittsburgh, as it were) and by so doing got a leg up on Farnsworth’s group.
This applies to our sociology class in that Farnsworth constituted the minority--a small-time farmer turned inventor with few resources and no real corporate backing in comparison with large-scale companies that were to become Farnsworth’s competitors. Given his rural background, Farnsworth was ill-equipped to handle the intense corporate competition involved in the race to invent the television.
Farnsworth is a perfect example of what a minority can experience against a much larger and better-funded majority.
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2 comments:
I will begin with two places to visit: http://philotfarnsworth.com and http://farnovision.com both have factual resources for anyone curious about the invention of television.
Being a Big business was becoming big business, and RCA, and its boss, Sarnoff was throwing its weight around, and stealing whatever patents it needed, regardless of who it might hurt.
It was Philco who prevented Philo from accompanying his wife back to Utah to bury their infant child who died from strep throat only months before antibiotics were discovered which would have cured him with a single dose.
When parents lose an infant, marital problems are not far behind, it is a huge, earth-shaking blow to the spirit, and has killed more than a few marriages.
Pem and Phil did not divorce, they were happily married all their adult lives, theres was a solid bond.
The audiences in Philadelphia lined up around the block to see the demostration of television in the mid thirties, not in 1928.
Something we can all remember is that not now, and not ever, will an idea, no matter how big, come from a committee, big ideas must first come from one mind.
Groups are useful when you collect lots of single great ideas into large projects like NASA's space shuttle, or Microsoft's many software products.
Kent M Farnsworth
Looks like some of my facts were wrong. That goes to show you should never trust wikipedia as a credible source. Thanks for your input--I checked out both those sites. Take care.
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