The Institute Medal of Honor

Each year the Institute awards a gold Institute Medal of Honor to that person who has made public the greatest advance in the science or art of radio communication, regardless of the time of performance or publication of the work on which the award is based. The contribution may be an unpatented or patented invention which has been completely and adequately described in a scientific or engineering publication of recognized standing, and must be in actual operation. It may also be a scientific analysis or explanation of hitherto unexplained phenomena of distinct importance to the radio art, although the application thereof need not necessarily be immediate. The advance may further be a new system of traffic regulation or control; a new system of administration of radio companies or of service of steamship, railroad or other companies; a legislative program beneficial to the radio art, or any portion of the operating or regulating feature of the art. In the past the medal has been awarded to the following engineers and scientists: Edwin H. Armstrong, 1918; E.F.W. Alexanderson, 1919; G. Marconi, 1920; R.A. Fessenden, 1921; Lee DeForest, 1922; John Stone Stone, 1923; M.I. Pupin, 1924; G.W. Pickard, 1926; L. W. Austin, 1927. The Board of Direction of the Institute at its April 4th meeting decided that the 1928 Medal of Honor should be awarded to Professor Jonathan Zenneek for his contributions to original research on radio circuit performance and for this scientific and educational contributions to the literature of the pioneer radio art.