Who is the real Nikola Tesla?
- William Wang
- Jan 31, 2022
- 6 min read
What do you think of when you hear the word “tesla''? Perhaps an electric car which has features such as autopilot and supercharging, while also having the ability to hit speeds up to 250 miles per hour. Or maybe a resonant electrical transformer circuit known more commonly as a tesla coil. Some may even correlate it to a video game, but no matter how you’ve heard of the word, “tesla'', it all connects back to one genius, one who single-handedly changed the course of history, multiple times. One who despite being hated, and penniless, went on to create some of the most groundbreaking discoveries known to man: his name is Nikola Tesla.
Nikola Tesla is the most crucial and pivotal person to your modern day life. Despite coming from nothing, no notable background, no inheritance or wealth, he changed the world, one invention at a time. Nikola Tesla was born in 1856, to Milutin Tesla and Đuka Tesla. His home was located inside the Austro-Hungary empire, in an area known as the “Military Frontier.” He always looked up to his parents, later deciding that his dream was to become an inventor, just like his mother. Years later, his dream almost comes true, as he gets accepted into the Graz University of Technology. Tesla is brought into a state of pure ecstasy by the news, but it doesn't last long. In 1879, Milutin Tesla, or Nikola’s father died from a stroke, Tesla was forced to leave the school; he had no money to pay for tuition. Heartbroken, and penniless, Tesla begins to look for a job, he applies for many but they just don't work out for him, it's only until 1880 Tesla finally finds a job that suited him, The American Telephone Company. Yet, he feels he doesn't belong there, soon leading up to him having a nervous breakdown. Two years after that incident, Tesla managed to change history for the first time, and it's all because of a simple walk in the park. While walking in the Budapest park with his friend, Anthony Szigety, Tesla had an epiphany. Tesla states this will recalling the event,“One afternoon, which is ever present in my recollection, I was enjoying a walk with my friend in the City Park and reciting poetry. At that age I knew entire books by heart, word for word. One of these was Goethe’s ‘Faust.’ The sun was just setting and reminded me of the glorious passage:
The glow retreats, done is the day of toil; It yonder hastes, new fields of life exploring; Ah, that no wing can lift me from the soil Upon its track to follow, follow soaring! A glorious dream! though now the glories fade. Alas! the wings that lift the mind no aid Of wings to lift the body can bequeath me. As I uttered these inspiring words the idea came like a flash of lightning and in an instant the truth was revealed.” After this he soon had conceived the idea of the AC induction motor, one of the most paramount breakthroughs in his lifetime. He would soon go onto showing his invention to the American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE). It was an invention that was thought to be impossible, this caused his fame to spread around the engineering world. A man named Westinghouse, George takes interest in Tesla’s inventions and decides to buy its patents, leading Tesla to a stable amount of cash to begin his experiments.
Tesla soon decided to become a U.S Citizen, he was mainly interested in perks that came along with it. Right after he built his own experimental lab in 46 East Houston Street, in New York City. He then starts his research on the soon to be named, “Tesla Coil”. After days of research and months of planning, Tesla finally reaps the rewards of his toils, the creation of the renowned Tesla
Coil. Yet, something that should have had a large impact on the engineering society, well, didn't, and Tesla was left disappointed, again. A year later, like every other night, Tesla could be found tinkering with his technology, but today something was different, Tesla seemed to have discovered something new. After experimenting with the evacuation tubes and HV he discovered the X-Ray. It was a shocking discovery, but nobody thought about the possibility of the dangers behind such a creation, nobody except for tesla that is. If you jump 5 years in the future to the New York Academy of Sciences Tesla warns the listeners of the possible dangers of creations like the X-Ray. Three years after the discovery of the X-ray, Tesla has had quite a decorated career at that point in his arduous journey of life. He was well known for his groundbreaking work in the field of electricity, and was also recognized as a contender in the War of the Currents. Little to Tesla’s knowledge, he would be met with the greatest obstacle in his life, one that could have completely changed the course of history if not for Tesla’s tenacity.
Disaster strikes, the worst possible that could have happened to Tesla, happened, a fire lit ablaze in the middle of Tesla’s laboratory, Tesla’s work was at the mercy of the fire, and the fire wasn't merciful. All of Tesla’s life work is destroyed, not a single scrap remains, Tesla is in shock, but despite the tragic event, Tesla immediately acts quickly, attempting to write down everything he could possibly remember, hoping to recover all that he lost. Sadly, this blow would prove to be lethal, completely halting any major advancements for several years. The burning of Tesla’s laboratory would mark the beginning of the end of Tesla’s golden age. Some might argue that Tesla still managed to gain fame for some pretty incredible things, but in my opinion, he already had invented them way before he decided to showcase them. Because of this, I believe that he didn’t invent it during that time, even if it was officially documented as such. Not many beneficial events happened to Tesla, his work in the field of wireless technology would soon be invalidated by a man named “Marconi” who is more, even if undeserving, well known as “The Father of the Radio”. Despite the fact that Tesla demonstrated his wireless inventions far before Marconi, Marconi had his “invention” patented. Tesla was furious, he immediately filed multiple lawsuits against Marconi who stole his work, and attempted to invalidate Marconi’s patents, but Tesla finds it difficult to, the reason being most of his work was burned in a fire. Finally, after 29 years of ferociously fighting against Marconi, Tesla dies, as a lonely man, alone, in a hotel room, without a penny or friend in his name. Only a few months after his death did Tesla win his 29 year old battle against Marconi, Tesla is the Father of the Radio, but Tesla will never know, that is the saddest part of it all.
In conclusion, Tesla has rocked the foundations of the world more than once. Despite living a life full of pain and misery, Tesla managed to push on, achieving things no other man could dream of doing. The sole purpose of this article is to bring light to Tesla’s accomplishments, which are often undermined by the lack of information on him presented by the press. He managed to invent things that we use often today, in the 1800’s. People mainly only know him due to the popularity of the car, named after him, and not because of his astounding resume. His dedication to his work often drove people away from trying to socialize with him, causing him to be very lonely, I believe that is one of the biggest regrets of his life, even without him here to tell us today, I think that we could all collectively agree that Tesla would have wished for a more happy life. In the end, I hope everyone reading this could remember his name, “Tesla” with a hint of admiration, not just for his work, but for his perseverance, for he is not only a genius, but another person who is also deserving of love.
Credits:
Sources
“All about Nikola Tesla, Inspiration to Mad Scientists Everywhere!” All About Nikola Tesla, www.capturedlightning.com/frames/tesla.html. Accessed 21 Jan. 2022.
“Rotating Field Revelation.” Tesla Science Center at Wardenclyffe, 25 Nov. 2020, teslasciencecenter.org/pivotalmoments/alternating-current.
“Destruction of the Tesla Laboratory by Fire from the Tesla Universe Article Collection.” Nikola Tesla, teslauniverse.com/nikola-tesla/articles/destruction-tesla-laboratory-fire. Accessed 21 Jan. 2022.
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