Kristie NortonProfessor McGuireWorld Civilization May 25, 2014The Carbon MicrophoneAmplifying a person's voice is a sufficient way to transmit effective communication from a source to a receiver. Since the development of the carbon microphone, the progression of vocal clarity through transmission systems has become much more efficient. The carbon microphone is also often referred to as a push-button microphone or a carbon transmitter (“History of Microphones”). While this specific microphone wasn't primarily the first vocal enhancer ever created, it was ultimately one of the most significant. The carbon microphone is said to have been created between 1876 and 1877. Who exactly invented this intricate invention is relatively undefined; some sources give all the credit to a musically and intellectually talented college professor and inventor named David Edward Hughes (Worrall 3). Others give the credit to an inventor historically known by the name of Thomas Alva Edison (Wills). However, other sources credit Emile Berliner with the patent for “one of the first devices ever created and by far the most usable” of all time (Shechmeister). Berliner is said to have invented this button microphone in 1876. Subsequently, his patent was rejected by the Supreme Court, so the credit was sold to Thomas Edison (Shechmeister). As is clear from many sources, Hughes actually created the first carbon transmitter microphone, but refused to patent it. Instead, seeing as he was already a well-known and successful inventor, Hughes simply “reported his invention to the Royal Society of London on May 8, and made it available to the general public on June 9” (Worrall). . Since the blueprints of this invention we have… middle of paper… the carbon microphone which makes it so distinct from all other electronic broadcast tones. By combining the actual sound of a voice passing through the carbon microphone fused with the technology we have today, the model created by Oksanen and Valimaki and used by a number of producers “incorporates a filtered noise source to shape the self-production of induced noise generated by carbon microphones” (Oksanen, Valimaki 27). Thanks to the scientific capabilities available to our world today, we are able to recreate a sound first discovered more than a century ago. The development of the Carbon Button Microphone certainly makes a statement about our ever-evolving technological society. Although it was an object invented many years ago during the Second Industrial Revolution, it has been modified and improved and has therefore left an indelible mark on our society.