Communication is an essential element of human existence. The transfer of information characterizes it. The best way to illustrate this is to discuss the evolution of the telephone. This extraordinary invention changed the way businesses are managed and the way people conduct their day to day lives.

Alexander Graham Bell patented the first telephone in 1876. Prior to his receiving the patent, three men were working towards the same goal: Antonio Meucci, Alexander Graham Bell, and Elisha Gray. Both Gray and Bell were working on a telegraph system on which more than one message at a time could be sent over a single wire. Gray, declaring that instruments to convey the human voice were mere playthings, decided he would concentrate on the “more practical” telegraph.

Continuing on in history, the first manually switched commercial telephone exchange opened in 1878. Only 21 subscribers were connected. The first automatic telephone switch was installed in 1892, until this time, operators manned the switches around the clock. In 1915, that first cross-country commercial line was formally opened between New York and San Francisco. For a single voice e

It is entertaining to note, the telephone throughout history was not always well received. In the early days, voices over the phone were almost inaudible. Furthermore, long-distance rates in the early part of the century were too expensive for most people, resulting in only the privileged few owning phones. However, the telephone service continued to advance and improve, and is now so much a part of Americans’ daily living that it seems almost unnecessary to summarize its importance. Americans have come to rely on it without thinking, taking the telephone for granted. Quoted from John Brooks, “The telephone is only a way of increasing human earshot. With it, man, instead of being able to make himself heard a few hundred yards away with a shout, can make himself heard and understood around the world with a whisper.”

Hofacker, Richard Q, Jr. 1996. Telephone. Vol.22, Colliers Encyclopedia CD-ROM, 28

xchange, 6,780 miles of copper wires, 30,000 telephone poles and two circuits were required. On April 25, 1935 the first message (by AT&T) was transmitted around the world. It took a quarter of a second for a single message to circle around the world, now gigabytes of information travel the same distance in as much time.

One problem all long-distance carriers share is the slow connection between homes. While big businesses are connected to their long-distance company with fiber optics tubing, only old-fashioned copper wires (owned by their local telephone company) join most residences and small businesses. A way of remedying this problem is introducing digital subscriber lines (DSL) which have the capability of carrying high-speed traffic over copper wire. Sprint recently announced that it would deploy DSL nationwide beginning in May 1999, linking the customers directly to its network and providing local as well as long-distance service. Further, the recent merger between MCI and Worldcom resulted in one of the most significant changes in our century. Long distant carriers no longer depend on the local exchange carrier (LEC) as in the past. Combined capabilities now provide global-to local-to-global service. This appears to be the way of the future, and possibly the death of the local e

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Approximate Word count = 1503
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)