Ernst F. W. Alexanderson was a Swedish American engineer and inventor who is best remembered for his pioneering work on the high frequency alternator that made long-distance radio communication possible. He was born on January 25, 1878, in Uppsala, Sweden. His father, Aron M. Alexanderson, taught classical languages at the University of Uppsala and was later chair of classical languages at the University of Lund. Alexanderson's mother was the former Amelie von Heidenstam. The young Alexanderson was educated at Lund High School and then at the University of Lund (between 1896 and 1897). He continued his studies at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, and later, in Berlin, he studied under the instruction of Adolf K. H. Slaby, the inventor of a primitive form of radio communication.

Alexanderson was anxious to put his knowledge to practical use. America, which seemed at that time...