Imagine living 200 years ago when it took 12 days to send a message from New York City to London. Fast forward to 150 years ago, and the first message sent through a transatlantic cable took 17 hours to travel from the Queen of England to the U.S. president. Then, 85 years ago, telephones became common in homes, and just 30 years ago, the first cell phone was invented. It was heavy, took 10 hours to charge, and only allowed for a 35-minute conversation. It also cost nearly $4,000! Twenty years ago, the first text message was sent, saying “Merry Christmas.” Today, more people have mobile phones than toilets, and about 23 billion text messages are sent every day.
When you tune a radio to a station, you receive information sent through electromagnetic waves at a specific frequency. These waves, called radio waves, are part of the same spectrum as visible light but are different in size. Light waves have wavelengths between 400 to 700 nanometers, which our eyes can see as colors. Radio waves, however, have much longer wavelengths, ranging from 100 microns to 100 kilometers, and are invisible to us because they don’t have enough energy to excite our eyes.
Just like a radio, your cell phone can receive signals at certain frequencies and also send out its own radio waves. The network your phone connects to is made up of towers, antennas, and transmitters that divide areas into “cells,” which is why we call them cell phones. These cells overlap so your phone can always connect to a tower.
If your phone battery drains quickly, it might be because your phone works harder to send signals indoors, in rural areas, or when you’re moving fast, like in a car. When someone sends you a text, their phone sends radio signals with both your phone’s and their phone’s identities, along with the message. The nearest tower picks up these signals, converts them into digital impulses, and sends them to a mobile switching center. If your phone is off or out of range, the message is stored until you can be reached. The network then finds the closest tower to you and sends the signal there. The tower converts it back into a radio signal for your phone to receive. This all happens in just seconds!
Interestingly, traditional SMS text messaging peaked in 2011. Now, most people use internet services to send messages. Last year, WhatsApp became the most popular messaging service, handling 30 billion messages daily worldwide. When you send messages across the globe, they travel through massive cables on the ocean floor. In fact, 99% of all international data is sent this way.
We are currently using the fourth generation of mobile networks, and 5G is on the way. It’s predicted that by 2023, we might have phones embedded in our bodies! Just a few decades ago, sending a love letter took months, but soon, you might be able to send a message just by thinking about it.
If you’re curious about how new forms of communication, like emojis, are changing the way we express ourselves, check out the science of emojis on ASAP Science. They explore how emojis can be misunderstood and how to use them correctly. Don’t forget to subscribe for more exciting science videos!
Research the history of communication from 200 years ago to the present. Create a timeline that includes key milestones like the invention of the telegraph, telephone, cell phone, and text messaging. Use images and brief descriptions to make your timeline visually appealing and informative.
Conduct a simple experiment to understand how radio waves work. Use a small radio and try tuning it to different stations. Observe how the radio receives signals at different frequencies. Write a short report on how this relates to how your cell phone sends and receives text messages.
Imagine you are creating a new messaging app. What features would it have to make communication easier and more fun? Draw a design of your app’s interface and write a description of its unique features. Consider how it could use new technologies like 5G or even future innovations.
Participate in a class debate about the impact of messaging on society. Divide into two groups: one arguing that messaging has improved communication and the other arguing that it has negative effects. Use examples from the article and your own research to support your arguments.
Explore how emojis can be misunderstood. Pair up with a classmate and send each other messages using only emojis. Try to interpret each other’s messages and discuss how emojis can enhance or confuse communication. Reflect on how this relates to the science of emojis mentioned in the article.
Here’s a sanitized version of the provided YouTube transcript:
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Two hundred years ago, it took 12 days to deliver a message from New York City to London. One hundred fifty years ago, the first transatlantic cable transmission was sent from the Queen of England to the U.S. president, taking 17 hours. Eighty-five years ago, telephones became common household fixtures, and thirty years ago, the first cell phone was invented, which weighed as much as an iron, took 10 hours to charge for a 35-minute conversation, and cost almost $4,000. Twenty years ago, the first text message was sent—a simple “Merry Christmas.” Today, more people have mobile phones than toilets, with around 23 billion text messages being sent every day.
But how do text messages even work? When you tune a radio to a station, you pick up the information being sent out via electromagnetic waves at a particular frequency—in this case, radio waves. These waves mostly pass through our bodies without interacting at all, but they are on the same spectrum as the visible light we see, just different in size. Photons with wavelengths between 400 to 700 nanometers have the perfect level of energy to excite the rods and cones in our eyes, which then transmit signals to our brain that we interpret as different colors. However, radio waves, which have wavelengths ranging from 100 microns to 100 kilometers, are much lower energy and can’t excite our eyes, so they’re invisible to us.
Similar to a radio, your cell phone receives signals at specific frequencies but can also transmit its own radio waves back to a network at the same time. The network is a system of towers, antennas, and transmitters that divide a geographical area into cells, hence the term “cell phone.” These cells determine which areas are served by which towers, though they generally overlap so that your phone always has a tower to communicate with.
If you feel like your phone battery is losing power faster than normal, it’s because phones transmit at higher levels indoors due to building materials, in rural areas due to greater distances to the network antennas, and when moving at high speeds, like in a car, due to the frequent handover between network antennas. Whenever someone sends you a text, their phone transmits radio signals that convey the identity of both their phone and yours, along with the content of the message. These signals are then picked up by the tower closest to them, which converts the radio waves into a digital electrical impulse and passes it along to a hub of the network called a mobile switching center. If you’re out of range or your phone is off, the message is stored by the mobile switching center for a short time until you can be located by the network. The network then figures out which tower you’re closest to and passes the signal there. Once at the tower nearest you, it’s converted back to a radio signal that can be picked up by the antenna in your phone. This all happens in seconds.
Interestingly, traditional SMS text traffic actually peaked in 2011. Now, most people send messages via internet services. In fact, last year, WhatsApp overtook traditional SMS as the number one handler of text messaging, managing 30 billion messages sent every day all around the world. If you’re sending those messages across the world, they’re actually sent via a giant cable that runs across the ocean floor. In fact, 99% of all international data is sent via undersea cables.
So, what does the future of messaging look like? We’re currently in the fourth generation of mobile communication networks, with 5G on the horizon. It’s been projected that the technology for phones embedded in our bodies could be available as soon as 2023. While only a few decades ago it may have taken months to send a love letter, in just a few years, you may be able to simply think of your loved one and send them a message to let them know you care.
We tackle humanity’s new forms of communication in the science of emojis over on ASAP Science, discussing how they’re often misinterpreted and how to use them properly. Check it out with the link in the description and subscribe for more weekly science videos.
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This version removes any informal language and ensures clarity while retaining the original content’s meaning.
Text – A written or printed communication that is sent electronically. – Scientists often use text messages to quickly share their research findings with colleagues.
Messages – Information or communication sent from one person or device to another. – The satellite sent messages back to Earth containing data about the planet’s atmosphere.
Radio – A technology that uses electromagnetic waves to transmit sound or other signals. – The weather station uses radio to broadcast updates about upcoming storms.
Waves – Disturbances that transfer energy from one place to another, often used in the context of electromagnetic waves. – Radio waves are used to transmit signals over long distances without the need for wires.
Signals – Encoded information sent over a distance for communication purposes. – The rover on Mars sends signals back to Earth to transmit images and data.
Network – A system of interconnected devices or computers that communicate with each other. – The school’s computer network allows students to access educational resources from any classroom.
Mobile – Capable of moving or being moved easily, often referring to portable electronic devices. – Mobile phones have become essential tools for communication and accessing information on the go.
Frequency – The number of times a wave repeats in a given period, often measured in hertz (Hz). – Different radio stations broadcast at different frequencies to avoid interference.
Battery – A device that stores and provides electrical energy for electronic devices. – The scientist used a battery to power the remote-controlled robot during the experiment.
Technology – The application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes, especially in industry. – Advances in technology have made it possible to explore distant planets with robotic spacecraft.
