Philo T. Farnsworth: The Life of Television's Forgotten Inventor (Unlocking the Secrets of Science) [Library Binding]

Russell Roberts (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 2003 | Age Level: 9 and up | Grade Level: 4 and up | Series: Unlocking the Secrets of Science

A biography of the persistent inventor whose interest in electricity led him to develop an electronic television system in the 1920s.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Russell Roberts has written and published books on a variety of subjects, including Ten Days to a Sharper Memory, Discover the Hidden New Jersey and Stolen! A History of Base Stealing. He also wrote Pedro Menendez de Aviles and Bernardo de Galvez for Mitchell Lane. He lives in Bordentown, New Jersey with his family and a remarkably lazy, yet fiesty calico cat named Rusti.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 9 and up
  
• Library Binding: 48 pages
• Publisher: Mitchell Lane Publishers (July 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1584151765
• ISBN-13: 978-1584151760
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 7.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,890,836 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great story, but misses a few important relevancies, January 11, 2004

By 

Roricka - See all my reviews

This review is from: Philo T. Farnsworth: The Life of Television's Forgotten Inventor (Unlocking the Secrets of Science) (Library Binding)

I loved this book, the story of yet another unsung hero, the lone wolf pioneer, oblivious to the world's thieves, fighting to realize a dream, then getting ripped off for it at the moment of success. Ask yourself: who invented the lightbulb, the telephone, the radio, the airplane? You know the answer. (It might not actually be fully correct, but you can certainly come up with an appropriate name.) Now, who invented television? That is, the means of converting a moving image into a stream of electrons. Stumped? Some people know the names of Vladimir Zworykin and Philo Farnsworth, but not many. This book is the extremely fascinating story of Philo T. Farnsworth (what a name!) and how one man, David Sarnoff, succeeded in placing in the mind of the public the idea that television was created by him, as the leader of RCA/NBC. Zworykin worked for Sarnoff, and between the two totally ripped off the ideas and even the patents behind the creation of TV. While Farnsworth did receive a minimal amount of credit and some money during his life, in the end his name was buried as far as the public was concerned.

Unfortunately, the author seems oblivious to the fact of similar rip-offs occurring right amongst some of the minor characters of the story, in particular Edison AND Marconi stealing, and trying to keep Tesla from receiving, the credit he deserved for lighting and radio discoveries. Everyone has their own axe to grind, but the fact is if you dig deep enough, there are probably stories like this surrounding every great technological advance.

Anyway, if you at all like the genre, this book is bound to become a classic for you. It's also a great cautionary tale regarding the weaknesses of the patent system as practiced in the USA.