The television, once a simple plane looking box with a pair of bunny antennas, has become one of the most innovative and probably most influencing (whether good or bad) devices ever developed. Whether for entertainment value, the news, or just out of habit, the average American watches around 4 hours of television daily; equivalent to a shocking 2 months straight. However, it has changed the world, and for better or for worse, it's here to stay.

The first idea for an electrical method of scanning, or collecting an image was conceived by the English inventor A. A. Campbell-Swinton in 1908. However, in wasn't until the 1930's that techniques involving cathode rays or electron beams as the ones used today were developed by the American electrical engineer Allen B. DuMont. This is essentially the same type of system used in televisions today.

The very first demonstration of a home receiver took place in Schenectady, New York, on January 13, 1928 by American inventor Ernst F. W. Alexanderson. Though the images on the 3-inch screen were lacking both in quality and steadiness, the receiver could be used at home. General Electric Company built and distributed a number of these sets in Schenectady, and on May 10, 1928, station WGY began regular broadcasting to the area.

By 1940, a rather refined color television system was developed by Peter Goldmark, a Hungarian-born American inventor. It was introduced in New York, and by 1951, public broadcastings of color television were being used by Goldmark's systems. However, it was dropped by the end of the year because of it's incompatibility with existing monochrome sets. Finally, in 1953, compatible color television was perfected and broadcasting in color resumed just a year later.

Now the year is 1998, and about 98 percent of homes in the U.S. have televisions. Like many other areas in communication, television continues to advance in both clarity and convenience, like cable and satellite TV, newer innovations like thinner and larger screens will become available in the near future. Don't be surprised if in a few years you find yourself saying, so long to your current receiver, while hanging a new one up on the wall.

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