Talk:Mahlon Loomis

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Untitled[edit]

Sufficient resources are easy to consult, so nursing this entry from stub to article should be relatively painless! A good start: http://earlyradiohistory.us/sec021.htm Sharidan 16:16, 6 January 2006 (UTC)[reply]

There are more reputable resources than the one above that should be referenced for this article to demonstrate numerous factual events and establish neutrality. The entry as written relies on merely one of numerous research documents into the history of Mahlon Loomis and wireless communication. Mahlon Loomis Inventor of Radio by Thomas Appleby, 145pps.,is an extensive indexed biography. The website citizendia.org has a timeline of radio history, including Mahlon Loomis. A West Virginia University Professor's research can be found at:http://www.math.wvu.edu/~gould/Loomis%27Life.PDF and this file alone cites other resources of information. Diagrams of Loomis' inventions are found at: http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/treasures/trr083.html. And there is more available for research. Wakeupripvanwinkle (talk) 03:07, 3 September 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Doesn't the above link clearly points out that the Loomis discovery was likely a well-intended but fake experiment? The page at http://earlyradiohistory.us/sec021.htm is entitled "Fakes, Frauds, and Cranks (1866-1922)."

We have to do better research before making such assertions and furthermore, there are ample resources regarding Loomis to call such a categorization of him into grave question. The very title of the webpage reference used is making a claim Loomis was a fraud by placing him on their fake list. This is not a neutral nor scholarly assessment of his work and does not seem satisfactory as a main reference for a Wikipedia entry. Mahlon Loomis was an authentic inventor of his time and entries about him need to accurately reflect the scope of his life and scientific theory.Wakeupripvanwinkle (talk) 03:07, 3 September 2012 (UTC)[reply]

It says "The development of the telegraph, telephone, and radio were major advances in communications. However, some would claim even more remarkable achievements, although without any real evidence that their supposed accomplishments were valid. These hoaxes and deceptions, combined with the shady financial activities of many of the early U.S. radio companies, helped to create doubt and skepticism about legitimate advances during the early days of radio development. ... Perhaps the best known and most expansive of these individuals was Mahlon Loomis, a Washington, D.C. dentist. ..."

Shouldn't this fact or opinion be pointed out in the Wikipedia article on Mahlon Loomis? There are so many calendar/holiday Web sites that celebrate the "Loomis Day" or the "Loomis (Telegraphy) Day" without further critical thoughts. See http://www.google.com/search?q="Loomis+(Telegraphy)+Day" and http://www.google.com/search?q="Loomis+Day"

Once again, when the life and works of Mahlon Loomis are sufficiently researched, it becomes clear that the above referenced quote is a slush box of opinion about scurrilous activities into which Loomis was carelessly tossed. There is no evidence established anywhere of shady financial dealings or corruption in the recorded life of Mahlon Loomis, nor even the hint of it except that stem from the above-mentioned resource. The 89th Congress, in S.J. Res.111, September 20th, 1965, recognized Mahlon Loomis as "...in 1864 invented the first wireless telegraph communication system and subsequently demonstrated it in Bluemont, Virginia in 1866; and Whereas Doctor Loomis obtained a United States patent on his wireless system in 1872; the first patent ever issued on a system of wireless signaling; and whereas Doctor Loomis invention and demonstration of wireless communication preceded by several years the developmental work of others in the field of radio...Congress hereby recognizes, on behalf of the American People, the foresight, ingenuity, and outstanding achievement of Doctor Mahlon Loomis in being the first person to invent and demonstrate a system of wireless communication."

It would appear that the reference material which is used as the basis for this Wikipedia article demonstrates an absence of "critical thoughts" rather than community celebrations. Wakeupripvanwinkle (talk) 03:07, 3 September 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Many readers will come to Wikipedia for confirmation. It is a scary situation (in terms of academic integrity) if the earlyradiohistory.us article is true.

J Xie 2003 Mar 29

Yes, readers do, and the article on Mahlon Loomis is an example of how Wikipedia articles can be misleading and/or inaccurate. "If" is the key-word, here in the reference to the earlyradiohistory article: should we not have more information than "if" when we compile Wikipedia articles? Further research provided would answer the "if" and the article about Mahlon Loomis could become a neutral, informative, and invigorating exploration into the history of wireless invention and early radio history.Wakeupripvanwinkle (talk) 03:07, 3 September 2012 (UTC)[reply]

Actually, both the earlyradiohistory article and the Wiki entry contain some serious factual errors. I have researched this over a period of 10 years and am now in the process of putting together a comprehensive paper on this. I have also repeated all the experiments (and then some) and will release the results of those at the same time. The "ifs " will all be answered and the article need not be neutral, rather it can and will be definitive. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Maleny Neil (talk • contribs) 08:10, 2 February 2013 (UTC)[reply]

Loomis's Dental plates[edit]

On a more mundane note, Loomis did make some real progess in Dental technology, being one of the first (if not the first) to demonstrate that a properly fitted dental upper plate could be retained in the mouth by moisture and suction alone instead of the large springs and other devices used at the time. The Smithsonian has a Loomis plate in its collection, closely resembling a modern plate - except the teeth are set into solid gold. --Saxophobia 04:55, 27 June 2006 (UTC)--[reply]

link not found[edit]

Can the author update the link? "Loomis's patent is substantially similar to U.S. Patent 126,356 ..." . http://www.google.com/patents?vid=126356 is invalid. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Boldklub-PJs (talk • contribs) 17:45, 5 August 2009 (UTC)[reply]

I fixed the broken link with an HTTP to the US Patent Office web site. When you click on IMAGE, a TIFF image reader is launched which I already have on my computer. This works fine for me. What is displayed when you click IMAGE? Greensburger (talk) 02:44, 6 August 2009 (UTC)[reply]

That link to the US Patent Office web site does not work without a TIFF image reader, but Ward's patent 126,356 can be found using www.google.com/patents with a search argument of 126356. But pointing directly to the Google patent record with "{US patent|126356}}" does not work. Greensburger (talk) 15:36, 20 January 2010 (UTC)[reply]

Documentation of text that was deleted from a reference[edit]

The article's statement that "The lack of independent witnesses or detailed technical descriptions has made it difficult to make a conclusive analysis of Loomis's various assertions and ideas. During this era the common practice for verifying that a system was working as advertised was to post observers at each end of a communication link, sending their own messages and making public reports."

Had the following reference removed on 2 April 2023, presumably because it was considered commentary more appropriate for the article's Talk page:

"Examples of the types of comprehensive demonstrations held to prove the successful operation of early communications systems to a doubting public include: the release of a detailed transcript of messages transmitted in August 1858 by the first transatlantic telegraph cable ("The Atlantic Cable", History, Theory, and Practice of the Electric Telegraph by George B. Prescott, 1860, pages 185–206); McClure Magazine's onsite representatives documenting an 1899 radiotelegraph link established by Guglielmo Marconi across the English Channel ("Marconi's Wireless Telegraph" by Cleveland Moffett, McClure's Magazine, June 1899, pages 99–112); and an August 1902 demonstration staged for the Los Angeles Herald to prove that a radiotelegraph link between the mainland and Catalina Island, California was operational.("'As It Was in the Beginning'" by Robert H. Marriott, Radio Broadcast, May 1924, page 57)".~~~~ Thomas H. White (talk) 05:11, 3 April 2023 (UTC)[reply]