Nikola Tesla

Nikola Tesla (July 10 1856 — circa January 7 1943; baptismal name: ??????) was an inventor, physicist, mechanical engineer, and electrical engineer. He is often regarded as one of the greatest geniuses of technological progression. http://www.neuronet.pitt.edu/~bogdan/tesla/otherson.htm In addition, Tesla is recognized among the most innovative engineers of the late 19th century and early 20th century. His patents and theoretical work form the basis of modern alternating current electric power (AC) systems, including the polyphase power distribution system and AC motor, with which he helped usher in the Second Industrial Revolution.

Biography

In America, Tesla's fame paralleled that of any other inventor or scientist in history and in popular culture. His name became a byword for innovation and practical achievement. He was deemed a "magician" who conjured up technical feats. After his demonstration of wireless communication in 1893 and after being the victor in the "War of Currents", he was widely respected as America's greatest electrical engineer. Much of his early work pioneered modern electrical engineering and many of his discoveries were of groundbreaking importance. In his later years, Tesla was regarded as a mad scientist, and he ended his life impoverished and forgotten. {{ref|Childress}}{{ref|Lomas}}

Related Topics:
History - Popular culture - Technical feats - Wireless communication - 1893 - War of Currents - Mad scientist

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Tesla's legacy can be seen across modern civilization wherever electricity is used. Tesla considered his exploration of various questions raised by science as ultimately a means to improve the human condition with the principles of science and industrial progress, and one that was compatible with nature.{{ref|enigmaKelley}} However, many of his achievements have been used, sometimes inappropriately and with some controversy, to support various pseudosciences, UFO theories, and New Age occultism.

Related Topics:
Modern civilization - Science - Human condition - Nature - Pseudosciences - UFO theories - New Age - Occult

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Early years

Tesla was born at the stroke of midnight during a lightning storm in Smiljan near Gospi?, Lika, (the Military Frontier of the Austria-Hungarian empire, a part of Croatia). Tesla was baptised in the Orthodox Church rite. His Baptism Certificate reports that he was born on June 28 (Julian calendar; July 10 in the Gregorian calendar) 1856, and christened by the Serbian orthodox priest, Toma Oklobd?ija.

Related Topics:
Smiljan - Gospi? - Lika - Military Frontier - Austria-Hungarian empire - Croatia - Baptised - Julian calendar - Gregorian calendar - 1856 - Serbian orthodox - Priest

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His father was Rev. Milutin Tesla, a priest in the Serb Orthodox Church Metropolitanate of Sremski Karlovci. His mother was ?uka Mandi?, herself a daughter of a Serbian Orthodox priest, who was talented in making home craft tools. His godfather, Jovan Drenovac, was a Captain in the army protecting the Military Frontier. Tesla was one of five children, having one brother and three sisters. His family moved to Gospi? in 1862. Tesla went to school in Karlovac (then Austria-Hungary), then studied electrical engineering at the Austria Politechnic in Graz, Austria (1875). While there, he studied the uses of alternating current. Tesla engaged in reading many works, as he stated,

Related Topics:
Serb Orthodox Church - ?uka Mandi? - Military Frontier - 1862 - Karlovac - Austria Politechnic - Graz - Austria - 1875

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: "At that age , I knew entire books by heart, word for word. One of these was Goethe's Faust." {{ref|PBS}}

Related Topics:
Goethe - Faust

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Tesla related in his autobiography that he experienced detailed moments of inspiration. From an early age Tesla would visualise an invention in his brain in precise form before moving to the construction stage (which is known as picture thinking). {{ref|HumanEnergy}}

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In 1881 he moved to Budapest to work for a telegraph company, the American Telephone Company. On the opening of the telephone exchange in Budapest, 1881, Tesla became the chief electrician to the company, later engineer to the Yugoslav government and the country's first telephone system. He also developed a device that, according to some, was a telephone repeater or amplifier, but according to others could have been the first loudspeaker. {{ref|21stbooks}} For a while he stayed in Maribor, where he was first employed as an assistant engineer. He suffered a nervous breakdown during this time.

Related Topics:
1881 - Budapest - Telegraph - Telephone - Yugoslav - Repeater - Amplifier - Loudspeaker - Maribor

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In 1882 he moved to Paris, France to work as an engineer for the Continental Edison Company, designing improvements to electric equipment. In the same year, Tesla conceived of the induction motor and began developing various devices that use rotating magnetic fields (for which he received patents in 1888).

Related Topics:
1882 - Paris, France - Continental Edison Company - Magnetic field - 1888

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Soon thereafter, Tesla hastened from Paris to his mother's side as she lay dying, arriving hours before her death in 1882. Her last words to him were, "You've arrived, Nidzo, my pride." After her death, Tesla fell ill. He spent two to three weeks recuperating in Gospi? and the village of Tomingaj near Gra?ac, the birthplace of his mother.

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In 1884, when Tesla first arrived in the US, he had little besides a letter of recommendation from Charles Batchelor, his manager in his previous job. In the letter of recommendation to Thomas Edison, Charles Batchelor wrote, "I know two great men and you are one of them; the other is this young man." Edison hired Tesla to work for his company Edison Machine Works. Tesla's work for Edison began with simple electrical engineering and quickly progressed to solving the company's most difficult problems. Tesla was offered to undertake a complete re-design of the Edison company's continous current dynamos.

Related Topics:
1884 - Charles Batchelor - Thomas Edison - Edison Machine Works - Continous current - Dynamo

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After Tesla described the nature of the benefits from his proposed modifications, Edison offered him US$50,000 if they were successfully completed. Tesla worked nearly a year to redesign them and gave the Edison company several enormously profitable new patents in the process. When Tesla inquired about the $50,000, Edison replied to him, "Tesla, you don't understand our American humor", and reneged on his agreement. Edison reportedly offered to raise Tesla's salary by $10 per week as a compromise - at which rate it would have taken almost 100 years to earn the money Edison had originally promised. Tesla resigned on the spot.

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