Final answer:
Transmitting data in a telegraph system used the Morse code alphabet, a binary encoding system based on dots and
dashes.
Step-by-step explanation:
Morse code was crucial in the history of communication, enabling instant communication over great distances for the first time in history, far surpassing the speed at which a messenger could travel on horseback.
This code, developed by Samuel Morse and used since the 1830s, represented letters of the alphabet through a series of electrical impulses denoted as 'long' and 'short' signals that were sent over telegraph wires.
The advent of Morse code and telegraph systems significantly sped up the dissemination of information and played an instrumental role in global connectivity, particularly with the successful laying of the transatlantic cable in 1866 which allowed for rapid communication between continents.
The same principles of binary coding are still at the heart of modern digital communications, where data such as cell phone conversations and computer information is transmitted as a series of binary ones and zeros.
Advances in technology over the years have vastly improved the efficiency and reach of communication systems, but the fundamental concept of conveying information through a binary system—pioneered by Morse code—remains the cornerstone of data transmission today.