I have recently taken up an interest in Amateur radio. This hobby requires a significant amount of testing and preparation, may not pay off in the long run, and is typically associated with conspiracy nuts, older gentlemen, and SETI Operators. I may not fall into one of those categories for the time being, but my interest increased after I studied about digital transmissions over radio systems. PSK31 being one of the most popular examples, with notable recognition given to "slow-scan" image transmission. The opportunities are present for some real innovation and academic interest.

I understand that I am simply going where many others have gone before, and that the prevalence of Mobile Phones make the hobby a little watered down - but the open source community has been hard at work developing communication technologies for the HF and VHF bands.

Maybe this could help improve my understanding of electromagnetism - the foundation of my alternative energy and electronics research. Though this independent research is not receiving funding I have found ways to reuse old components and a bit of ingenuity to get rolling.