[1] Following several attempts to form a technical organization of wireless practitioners in 1908–1912, the Institute of Radio Engineers (IRE) was finally established in 1912 in New York City.In the first half of the 20th century, radio communications had experienced great expansion, and the growing professional community of developers and operators of radio systems required standardization, research, and authoritative dissemination of new results among practitioners and researchers.To meet these needs, the IRE established professional journals (most notably the Proceedings of the IRE, established 1913 and edited for 41 years by Alfred N. Goldsmith); participated actively in all aspects of standardization and regulations of the frequency spectrum, modulation techniques, testing methods, and radio equipment; and organized regional and professional groups (starting in 1914 and 1948, respectively) for cooperation and exchange between members.Several new professional organizations (such as the Society of Broadcast Engineers), were founded shortly thereafter by IRE and AIEE members who opposed the merger.Other notable presidents of the IRE included Irving Langmuir (1923), John H. Morecroft (1924), Lee deForest (1930), Louis A. Hazeltine (1936), Frederick E. Terman (1941), Arthur F. Van Dyck (1942),[2][3] William R. Hewlett (1954), Ernst Weber (1959; also first president of IEEE, 1963) and Patrick E. Haggerty (1962).