Richard J. Thompson Jr.: Crystal Clear

In this interview, Richard J. Thompson, Jr. discusses his book "Crystal Clear: The Struggle for Reliable Communications Technology in World War II?.  Crystal Clear chronicles a critical episode in both military and electronics history?the difficult creation of reliable quartz crystal frequency control units for radio communications during World War II. It combines scientific, historic, and human details to tell of an extremely important wartime project that, in terms of size and budget, was second only to the Manhattan Project. Quartz crystals provided the Allies, for the first time, with reliable communication on the front lines, and then went on to become the core of some of the most basic devices of the post-war era, from watches, clocks, and color televisions, to cell phones and computers.