Lesson plan
Plectron
A Plectron is a specialized VHF/UHF single-channel, emergency alerting radio receiver, used to activate emergency response personnel, and disaster warning systems. Manufactured from the late 1950s, through the late 1990s, by the now defunct Plectron Corporation in Overton, Nebraska, hundreds of thousands of these radios were placed in homes of first responders across all of North America. This included ambulance crews, full-time and volunteer firefighters, off-duty specialized police response teams, Civil Defense members, and search and rescue teams. A Plectron's main feature (distinguishing it from a regular squelched radio) was its selective de-squelching. It would only sound when a correct pair of tones was broadcast allowing many agencies (with different tones) to share the same frequency. Some Plectron models had a set of built-in rechargeable batteries, making it portable.
Article summary
A Plectron is a specialized VHF/UHF single-channel, emergency alerting radio receiver, used to activate emergency response personnel, and disaster warning systems. Manufactured from the late 1950s, through the late 1990s, by the now defunct Plectron Corporation in Overton, Nebraska, hundreds of thousands of these radios were placed in homes of first responders across all of North America. This included ambulance crews, full-time and volunteer firefighters, off-duty specialized police response teams, Civil Defense members, and search and rescue teams. A Plectron's main feature (distinguishing it from a regular squelched radio) was its selective de-squelching. It would only sound when a correct pair of tones was broadcast allowing many agencies (with different tones) to share the same frequency. Some Plectron models had a set of built-in rechargeable batteries, making it portable.
Key claims
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Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.