Alfred Norton Goldsmith (September 15, 1888 – July 2, 1974) was a noted American electrical engineer. Goldsmith was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, received his B.S. in 1907 from the College of the City of New York and in 1911 his Ph.D. from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

where he studied under Michael I. Pupin. He taught at City College from 1906 to 1923. In 1912 Goldsmith co-founded the

Institute of Radio Engineers The Institute of Radio Engineers (IRE) was a professional organization which existed from 1912 until December 31, 1962. On January 1, 1963, it merged with the American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE) to form the Institute of Electrical ...

(IRE) and was the first editor of its

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, serving for 42 years. In 1914 he consulted as a radio engineer for the Atlantic Communication Company, and for the General Electric Company from 1915 to 1917. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

he was Technical Director of the

United States Army Signal Corps The United States Army Signal Corps (USASC) is a branch of the United States Army that creates and manages communications and information systems for the command and control of combined arms forces. It was established in 1860, the brainchild of Ma ...

School of Communication and the U. S. Naval Radio School at City College. After the war, Goldsmith became director of research for the

Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company of America The Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company of America (commonly called American Marconi) was incorporated in 1899. It was established as a subsidiary of the British Marconi Company and held the U.S. and Cuban rights to Guglielmo Marconi's radio (then ...

and in 1919

RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...

's director of research. In 1923 he was named RCA's Chief Broadcast Engineer and in 1927 Chairman of the Board of Consulting Engineers of the National Broadcasting Company. He remained with RCA as vice president and general manager until 1931, and was awarded RCA's first production

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tube with an inscription reading "RCA Laboratory’s Award for Outstanding Work in Research presented to Alfred Norton Goldsmith for his early recognition of the importance of a tri-color

kinescope Kinescope , shortened to kine , also known as telerecording in Britain, is a recording of a television program on motion picture film, directly through a lens focused on the screen of a video monitor. The process was pioneered during the 194 ...

and for his concept of means for accomplishing it." Goldsmith was made an IRE Fellow in 1915, its president in 1928, and served on its board of directors for 51 years. In 1941 he was awarded the

IRE Medal of Honor The IEEE Medal of Honor is the highest recognition of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). It has been awarded since 1917, when its first recipient was Major Edwin H. Armstrong. It is given for an exceptional contributio ...

"for his contributions to radio research, engineering, and commercial development, his leadership in standardization, and his unceasing devotion to the establishment and upbuilding of the Institute and its proceedings", the

IEEE Founders Medal The IEEE Founders Medal is an award is presented for outstanding contributions in the leadership, planning, and administration of affairs of great value to the electrical and electronics engineering profession. It may be presented to an individual ...

in 1954, and the first IEEE Haraden Pratt Award in 1972, to honor "outstanding service to the IEEE." Goldsmith was also a Fellow of the

Acoustical Society of America The Acoustical Society of America (ASA) is an international scientific society founded in 1929 dedicated to generating, disseminating and promoting the knowledge of acoustics and its practical applications. The Society is primarily a voluntary org ...

, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the

American Rocket Society The American Rocket Society (ARS) began its existence on , under the name of the American Interplanetary Society. It was founded by science fiction writers G. Edward Pendray, David Lasser, Laurence Manning, Nathan Schachner, and others. Pendra ...

, the

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, the International College of Surgeons, the

New York Academy of Sciences The New York Academy of Sciences (originally the Lyceum of Natural History) was founded in January 1817 as the Lyceum of Natural History. It is the fourth oldest scientific society in the United States. An independent, nonprofit organization wi ...

, the

Optical Society of America Optica (formerly known as The Optical Society (OSA) and before that as the Optical Society of America) is a professional society of individuals and companies with an interest in optics and photonics. It publishes journals and organizes conference ...

, and was a Benjamin Franklin Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (London). He was also a senior member in the American Astronomical Society, as well as a member of the American Physical Society, and an honorary member of the

Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) (, rarely ), founded in 1916 as the Society of Motion Picture Engineers or SMPE, is a global professional association of engineers, technologists, and executives working in the m ...

. Since 1975 the Alfred N. Goldsmith Award for Distinguished Contributions to Engineering Communication Award has been given by IEEE Professional Communication Society in his honor.

References

IEEE History Center biography

Interview by E. K. Van Tassel

Alfred N. Goldsmith, 1928

IEEE Professional Communication Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goldsmith, Alfred Norton 1888 births 1974 deaths Columbia School of Engineering and Applied Science alumni American electrical engineers Radio pioneers IEEE Medal of Honor recipients Fellows of the Acoustical Society of America Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellows of the Optical Society Members of the American Rocket Society