The radical who shaped the future [Alec Reeves]

2002 is the centenary of the birth of Alec Reeves. The author describes the achievements of a remarkable engineer and an uncommon man. Reeves devised the technology on which the information age depends. A committed pacifist, he developed a top secret bombing system that altered the course-and perhaps the outcome-of the Second World War. A prolific and practical inventor, he experimented with psychokinesis and acknowledged the possibility of the paranormal. In 1937 he formulated the principles of pulse-code modulation-laying the foundations for all of today's digital and multimedia technologies. During WWII he helped develop a technique using radio techniques for guiding bombers to their targets and when the bombs should be released. This system was known as Oboe. Following the war he worked on increasing the capacity and reliability of communication systems. His fascination with the human brain, its operation and capacity led him to study psychokinesis and telepathy.