"Sparks" was also the
nickname given to the
radio operator aboard a ship, especially in the days of
tube electronics. As the shipboard
environment was always a little damp and salty, the equipment needed
constant supervision to operate, and had a dedicated radio operator to maintain the system as well as communicate with other ships and the
shore. Also, as messages in the day were almost exclusively in
morse code (as the contact was so noisy and of such poor quality that only code pulses could make their way through with any clarity) a dedicated operator was required to send and recieve messages.
Due to the nature of electrical circuitry, especially those of an antique vintage, sparks and coronal discharges were common, and the unaccquainted would often shock themselves on the equipment when they made a pilgramage to the cubbyhole where "Sparks" and his gear resided.