1200 Year Old Telephone

[CMD]

"Watson, is that you?"

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/ideas-innovations/Theres-a-1200-year-old-Phone-in-the-Smithsonian-Collections-231152081.html?device=ipad

[gregszybala]

Wow, goes to show what little we really know about those before us here.

[Olden]

.
Probably invented by a woman..

[CMD]

Olden wrote:

.
Probably invented by a woman..

   :rolf:  :rolf:   :dry:

[Olden]

.
halfway there.

[painshill]

How very interesting. Until that item was found, the invention (as a useable communication device) was attributed to Robert Hooke who developed the “acoustic string” phone in Britain around 1667.
A number of commercial devices with a range up to about half a mile were also marketed in America in the late 1800’s as competitors to the electric telephone, circumventing Bell’s patent. Lemuel Mellett’s Pulsion Telephone Supply Company of Massachusetts designed a system with a claimed range of 3 miles which was deployed on railroad right-of-ways for a short time.
The Mayans claimed they had an internet version that the aliens helped them develop, but they were always saying stuff like that. Made good calendars, but they were right bigheads really. Never caught on. Major design flaws:

[Olden]

.
The Mayans version could never be properly tested due to them hanging heads up to dry -
they did first coin the phrase of "who's on-line" though.