AMOK DISPATCH

Tactics

Dr. Alfred Tomasin, an eminent French physician and hearing specialist, maintains that it is via the ear; the first of our sense organs to develop in utero, that we form our primary connection: first with the inner, and then the outer world. In an elaborate metaphor rigorously supported by years of clinical research, Dr. Tomatis suggests that our very body is a kind of cathedral (meaning that is sounds, from inside, like a cathedral). It has been demonstrated that the “stones” (bones) of the quintessentially sacred edifice selectively amplify and conduct the frequencies most vividly experienced in the womb. Moreover, throughout our adult life the tuning of attention to these (relatively higher) frequencies leads to a sense, literally and physically, of being drawn to a “higher” (both literally—posturally—and figuratively) place in and beyond ourselves. John Leonard, former chief correspondent for The New York Times, catches the same sense in a secular, Platonic image: “Radio out to be our refuge. Radio is the cave of the imagination, and that’s where the stories started—with language in a cave, playing with the shadows on the walls, swimming in sound.”

— Tim Wilson, “Acoustic Architecture,” from Radiotext(e)

Reviews

Secret Signals: The Euro-Numbers Mystery

Simon Mason

The enigmatic numbers stations, with their seemingly random announcements of numbers, are something of mystery, with their true purpose most likely being the transmission of briefings for the world’s most covert operatives. To the average outside listener, these long lists of numbers, often on exotic frequencies and in foreign tongues, may be an interesting phenomenon but are ultimately just too dull for sustained listening. Surprisingly, or perhaps inevitably, there is a small group of dedicated listeners obsessively documenting such broadcasts. Here are catalogued such classics as: 1920- 019 Gr. 19 1925- 001 Gr. 12 1930- 281 Gr. 14 1940- 154 Gr. 17 1945- 993 Gr. 14 1950- 231 Gr. 13 — “The Russian Woman” March 20, 1991 in AM mode on 4425 kHz. These books give detailed lists of frequencies, times, and language and phonetic alphabets used, with example transmissions. BW

Publisher: Tiare
Paperback: 70 pages

Shortwave Clandestine Confidential

Gerry L. Dexter

DXers, in radio lingo, are armchair detectives bent on receiving “clandestine” signals from the most distant and forbidden shortwave stations: revolutionary stations, stations behind enemy lines in a war, stations run by the CIA or KGB, and so on. Tells the story of past clandestine stations: Radio Sandion (The Voice of the Sandinistas), Radio Liberation (Vietnam) and Radio Swan (an anti-Castro station, courtesy of the CIA). The book goes on to discuss currently popular DX listening targets in Libya, Chad, Ethiopia, Iran, China, Burma, Poland, Sri Lanka, Cuba and many other turbulent countries. The trick with DXing is getting proof of what you hear, an all-important “verification” letter proving the station actually exists—which is no piece of cake to obtain, wartime or not. GR

Publisher: Universal Electronics
Paperback: 84 pages
Illustrated

So You Bought a Shortwave Radio: A Get-Acquainted Guide to the World of Shortwave

Gerry L. Dexter

A “get-acquainted guide to the wide world of shortwave,” or, as it might be called, the poor man’s internet. Eavesdrop on spies and smugglers; hear Chinese opera, Swiss polkas, and South Seas chants. Tells how shortwave radios work, where to find the stations you want, how to hook up with other Hams, and how to join the “DXers”—patient listeners (DX is radio lingo for “distance”) who prowl for the most distant frequencies possible, then send for station verifications, which then become “the stuff of collections.” Contains plenty of addresses for more specialized information. GR

Publisher: Tiare
Pamphlet: 74 pages
Illustrated

Underground Frequency Guide: A Directory of Unusual, Illegal and Cover Radio Communications

Donald W. Schimmel

Readers who have spent any time at all exploring the shortwave radio dial (DXing, in nerdspeak) have probably heard at least one of the many stations that broadcast, except for the occasional verbal non-sequitur, nothing but an endless series of numbers in Spanish, English or German. What the heck is that about? Hmmm, let’s see . . . there’s no hideous Whitney Houston songs and the voice doesn’t sound like Casey Kasem, so we can pretty much rule out the “American Top 40,” countdown; no one ever says “Breaker, breaker, good buddy,” or “Bear in the air” so it’s definitely not wayward CB radio transmissions. Well, wonder no more! Now there’s a comprehensive (albeit vaguely speculative) guide to the mysterious world of “unusual, illegal, and covert radio communications.” The third edition of Donald Schimmel’s Underground Frequency Guide not only gives all the information available on those “numbers” stations (usually coded espionage messages) but also many other bizarre shortwave anomalies. Find out which weird “beeps,” “rasps” and “foghorns” are the clandestine communications of spies, smugglers or paramilitary guerillas and which ones are still just weird “beeps,” and “rasps” and “foghorns." DB

Publisher: Hightext
Paperback: 200 pages
Illustrated

Uno, Dos, Cuatro: A Guide to the Numbers Stations

“Havana Moon”

The enigmatic numbers stations, with their seemingly random announcements of numbers, are something of mystery, with their true purpose most likely being the transmission of briefings for the world’s most covert operatives. To the average outside listener, these long lists of numbers, often on exotic frequencies and in foreign tongues, may be an interesting phenomenon but are ultimately just too dull for sustained listening. Surprisingly, or perhaps inevitably, there is a small group of dedicated listeners obsessively documenting such broadcasts. Here are catalogued such classics as: 1920- 019 Gr. 19 1925- 001 Gr. 12 1930- 281 Gr. 14 1940- 154 Gr. 17 1945- 993 Gr. 14 1950- 231 Gr. 13 — “The Russian Woman” March 20, 1991 in AM mode on 4425 kHz. These books give detailed lists of frequencies, times, and language and phonetic alphabets used, with example transmissions.

Publisher: Tiare
Paperback: 84 pages