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About Nikola Tesla:Born in 10th of July/1856, Serbian-American engineer and inventor Nikola Tesla invented the first alternating current (AC) motor and developed AC generation and transmission technology. He worked for a short time at the Edison Machine Works in New York City before he struck out on his own. Tesla became well known as an inventor and was noted for his showmanship at public lectures.
Working at Edison:In June 1884, Tesla sailed for New York City and arrived with a letter of recommendation from Charles Batchelor—a former employer—to Thomas Edison, which was purported to say, “My Dear Edison: I know two great men and you are one of them. The other is this young man!”.
He worked there for a year, impressing Edison with his diligence and ingenuity. At one point Edison told Tesla he would pay $50,000 for an improved design for his DC dynamos. After months of experimentation, Tesla presented a solution and asked for the money. Edison demurred, saying, “Tesla, you don’t understand our American humor.” Tesla quit soon after. |
War Of Currents:
Alternating Current (AC), whose figurehead was the Serbian-American eccentric genius Nikola Tesla, was battling Direct Current (DC) and it’s brilliant but arguably more business savvy Thomas Edison.
The voltage level in the AC current can be raised very easily with relatively inexpensive transformers. Higher voltage allows the same amount of power to be transmitted with less current. This translates to very practical advantages so it was more cost-effective and practical to use AC for power transmission.
The voltage level in the AC current can be raised very easily with relatively inexpensive transformers. Higher voltage allows the same amount of power to be transmitted with less current. This translates to very practical advantages so it was more cost-effective and practical to use AC for power transmission.
Victory:
Edison launched a campaign against AC, claiming it was dangerous and could kill people; Tesla countered by publicly subjecting himself to 250,000-volt shocks to demonstrate AC’s safety. Ultimately, alternating current won the fight.
Honors:
The nature of his earlier work and the pronouncements he made to the press later in life earned him the reputation of an archetypal "mad scientist" in American popular culture.
In 1960, the General Conference on Weights and Measures named the SI unit of magnetic flux density the tesla in his honor.
In 1960, the General Conference on Weights and Measures named the SI unit of magnetic flux density the tesla in his honor.
Death:
Tesla died in his room on January 7, 1943. Later that year the U.S. Supreme Court voided four of Marconi’s key patents, belatedly acknowledging Tesla’s innovations in radio. The AC system he championed and improved remains the global standard for power transmission.