Morse code most common letter in English, the letter "E", has the shortest code: a single dot. Because the Morse code elements are specified by proportion rather than specific time durations, the code is usually transmitted at the highest rate that the receiver is capable of decoding. The Morse code transmission rate ("speed") is specified in "groups per minute", commonly referred to as "words per minute". Morse code is usually transmitted by on-off keying of an information carrying medium such as electric current, radio waves, visible light or sound waves. The current or wave is present during time period of the dot
Morse code abbreviations head, instead of writing text on paper or into a computer file, the receiving operator copying mentally will interpret the prosign for either a mental pause, or to jot down for later reference a short word or phrase from the information being sent. "Rag chewer" is a name applied to amateur radio Morse code operators who engage in informal Morse code conversations (known as "chewing the rag") while discussing subjects such as: the weather, their location, signal quality, and their equipment. Meaningful rag chewing between fluent Morse code operators having different native languages is possible because of a common language