Guglielmo Marconi, b. 1874, d. 1937

One of the greatest and most original inventors of the twentieth century, his inventions led to the development of the wireless telegraph, the radio and all other sorts of telecommunications: I sometimes refer to him as the one of the most brilliant a nd, at the same time, one of the most unfortunate men of his time. His relentless pursuit of novel means of telecommunications became an all-consuming obsession, to the point where all that mattered was it can be done regardless of common or expert b elief: his enigmatic life is full of setbacks and contretemps. Nobel prize winner in Physics for his startling discoveries, it is maintained that he never finished school! I admire his all-consuming passion for discovery.

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