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The life of a modern person cannot be imagined without digital technologies. And it all started with the ability to convert speech into electromagnetic waves, which people learned not so long ago – a little more than 120 years ago. At a meeting of the Physico-Chemical Society on May 7 (April 25), 1895, the legendary scientist Alexander Popov showed a receiver he had assembled, on which it was possible to record electrical vibrations created by a lightning discharge, remotely and without wires. In honor of this event, already in the 7th century, May XNUMX began to be celebrated as Radio Day as a tribute to representatives of all branches of communications.
When is it customary to celebrate a holiday
Radio day 7 May every year is celebrated, first of all, by those who study or teach (now or earlier) in radiophysical institutes and faculties of our country. 2023 will be no exception.
history of the holiday
50 years after Popov’s great discovery, in 1945 the Council of People’s Commissars approved a resolution according to which another date appeared on the holiday calendar – Radio Day, celebrated on May 7th. The document emphasized that this was done to “popularize the achievements of domestic science and technology in the field of radio and encourage amateur radio among the general population.”
However, it is worth noting that for the first time the birthday of radio was widely celebrated in the Soviet Union 20 years before the adoption of the decision of the Council of People’s Commissars – in 1925, when the great invention of radio turned 30 years old.
And on October 1, 1980, the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR adopted Decree No. 3018-X “On holidays and memorable days”, in which May 7 was fixed as an annual holiday in the calendar of professional dates.
What is celebrated on Radio Day
Today, Radio Day has become a celebration of all those who work in various sectors of communications, television and radio broadcasting, and digital technologies. The date is celebrated not only in our country, but also in some other states – for example, in Belarus, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan and Bulgaria.
On Radio Day, we remember that radio and other forms of communication, without which our modern life is unthinkable, were not so long ago considered a real miracle that allowed a person to transfer his voice over long distances. The information breakthrough that has been observed over the past decades would not have been possible without the efforts of many researchers, engineers, technicians, whose work we honor on May 7th. On this day, one should not forget to congratulate those who work on television, are engaged in radio broadcasting, at the post office, in communications, as well as radio amateurs. All these people help us quickly learn about the main news in the country and the world, share our thoughts and feelings with those who are dear to us.
In addition, April 18 is celebrated in some countries as a separate amateur radio day, and on February 13, not so long ago, World Radio Day began to be celebrated.
Holiday traditions
At the Faculty of Radiophysics of the UNN named after. N.I. Lobachevsky on this day, the doors are opened for all graduates of past years – a special solemn program is being prepared for them. In the Taganrog Radio Engineering, May 7 is considered a holiday for the entire university. In addition to the traditional concert with amateur performances, an evening of meetings between members of the student club is organized. Graduates of the Ryazan Radio Engineering State University are also expected within the walls of their native university. They begin to celebrate at night with a solemn “move” around the monument to Popov, located near the educational institution. Graduates and students jokingly greet each other with the words “Popov is risen!” and “Truly Popov!”, and also exchange painted radio tubes.
There is a similar tradition at the radio engineering faculty of USTU-UPI in Yekaterinburg, where the celebrants go in a procession from the alma mater to the monument to the scientist.
Since 1989, former and current students of the Tomsk Institute of Radio Engineering (TIRIET, now TUSUR) also hold a solemn procession through the streets of the city. At the end of the event, obsolete televisions, receivers, monitors and computer parts fly out from the top floor of the student dormitory as a symbol of the fact that technology does not stand still, and devices inevitably become obsolete. Students of the Faculty of Radio Engineering and Cybernetics at the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology can take part in an invention competition in honor of Radio Day.