Nikola Tesla: Biography of a True Genius

By Luke Johnston

Nikola Tesla - Genius or Madman?

 

Noted for his incredible intellect, eccentric ideas, and world-altering inventions, Nikola Tesla has evolved into the classic example of mad scientist. But is that all there is to the story?

Uncover the rich life of Tesla and learn about his entrance into the world as a "Child of Light," how he conceived his most brilliant inventions, and why he fell into obscurity and eventually died in a hotel, alone and penniless.

 

Journey with the visionary, from a small town in Croatia all the way to New York City, and gain insight into the mind of one of the greatest thinkers the world has ever known.

 

In this biography of Nikola Tesla, you'll discover:

• How his unique way of looking at the world brought the technology of the future to the 19th century
• What the Tesla vs Edison "Battle of the Currents" was really about
• His many successes - and many failures
• Details of his most incredible inventions, some of which we still use to this day
• How genius turned to madness

With excerpts from Tesla's autobiography and insight from those who knew him best, this book aims to shed new light on the unique visionary and inspire the next generation of scientists. The story of Tesla will leave you feeling mournful for his sad fate, moved by his never-ending pursuit of a better future, and inspired by his enthusiasm.

 

There's so much more to discover. Get your copy of the biography of Nikola Tesla, and decide for yourself - genius, madman, or both?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Luke Johnston
• Release date: Apr 21, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393230793

Book preview

Nikola Tesla: Biography of a True Genius

By Luke Johnston

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Table Of Contents

Introduction

A Child of Light – Tesla’s Early Years

Smiljan

Gospic

The College Dropout

Graz

Working Life

The Breakthrough

Paris and The Edison Lighting Company

Charles Batchelor

Strasbourg

Coming to America – Tesla versus Edison

A Short Interlude on Thomas Edison

Atlantic Crossing

The SS Oregon

Edison’s American Humour

Arc Lighting

Enter George Westinghouse

The Egg of Columbus

The Royalties

Tesla versus Stanley

The Battle of The Currents

The Columbian Exposition

Tesla’s Highs and Lows

Tesla Goes Back to What He Does Best

Tesla’s Mother

The Royalties Again

The Last Battle

The Big Wheel

Good Times

Radio – A Missed Opportunity

Madison Square Gardens – 1897

The Submarine Torpedo Boat

Colorado Springs

High Voltage

The Trouble with Tesla

Wardenclyffe and the World Telegraphy Centre

J.P. Morgan

The Magazine Articles

Turbines

The Edison Award

Tesla’s Last Years

The Tesla Effect

Obscurity

Tesla’s Legacy

References

Introduction

If we measure the success of Nikola Tesla's life based only on his fame and wealth, and drew this as a line on a chart,  the line,  starting in 1856, would steadily move upwards before reaching a significant peak by the end of the 19th century, before steadily sinking to the bottom around the time of his death in 1943.  Nikola Tesla’s fall into obscurity and poverty is an enigma, and some would say, a tragedy.

Over the course of his lifetime, he became one of the most celebrated scientists of his time. His most famous invention allowed the free flow of electricity over great distances and profoundly changed society across the globe; it still punctuates our lives in this modern era, day-by-day, minute-by-minute.

He was also partially responsible for the invention of the radio and accurately predicted the free-flowing movement of information in writing via voice and even by screen. He became obsessed with an idea that prepared us for the World Wide Web at least a century before its inclusion in our everyday lives. Every smartphone in the world carries at least one vestige of the technology he created in the 19th century.

Yet at the end of his long life, he was an obscure, penniless figure; almost a laughing stock in the scientific community. He died alone (except perhaps for the company of the pigeons he allowed into his room to feed) and wasn't discovered for at least 2 days until one of the maids in a New York Hotel stumbled upon his body. His achievements were almost forgotten, but not quite.

He continued to be revered in his home country of Serbia, where a number of astute historians of the era kept the torch burning, and in 1975 he was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame for his invention of technology that ran on alternating currents. Then, in 2003, a motor company was born that, after a competition to choose its name, called itself Tesla as a tribute to the great scientist.

Since then, interest in Nikola Tesla, the scientist and the man, has increased, and he has begun to re-take his rightful place in history as one of the most innovative and influential inventors in either modern or ancient history.

This is not hyperbole. Try to imagine a world without electricity on tap to almost every household in the world, to every office block, factory, hospital, and school. His invention of the alternating current motor paved the way for energy and lighting to be pumped safely and relatively cheaply into homes and businesses the world over. Nikola Tesla was not the only player of this game, but it was his inventions that paved the way for the seismic changes in society we now take for granted.

It is inconceivable for most human beings living in the current era to exist without freely available electricity. It is not an exaggeration to say that Tesla’s creation of the polyphase AC motor forms one of the cornerstones of modern society. It is up there with the invention of the wheel, the taming of horses, and the printing press as one of humanity’s greatest inventions.

Yet, whilst Nikola Tesla’s name festered in obscurity, history books told us about the great achievements of Michael Faraday (discoverer of electromagnetic induction), Thomas Edison (prolific inventor with 1000 patents to his name, including the phonograph and the electric light bulb), and Guigliemo Marconi (credited  as being the inventor of wireless telegraphy or, as we now call it, radio. The word credited is used because he borrowed from some technology Nikola Tesla had already created and patented).

The summary of Tesla’s career is as follows: he invented the polyphase alternating current motor which, as mentioned,  changed the course of society; he laid the foundations for the invention of radio; was at one time lauded even over Thomas Edison as the greatest living inventor, but only a few decades after this became an obscure figure on the fringes of modern science; he ended up dying alone, penniless, and uncelebrated in a hotel room in New York in 1943.

In this book, I would like to go through Tesla's life - his early years, his education, the influence his mother and father exerted over him, his arrival in America, and in particular his dealings with Thomas Edison. I would like to take a look at the years between 1888 and 1898 in particular, which was his most fertile period where he dabbled in robotics, remote control technology, turbine engines, a weaponized version of electricity, oscillating technology, the Tesla Coil, and more. I’ll also be looking at what became an obsession for him - the wireless emission of huge waves of electricity - and then view his life from 1900 onwards, when Tesla started out at the pinnacle of his success and then plunged into obscure penury.

In researching for this book, I have used a number of sources and would like to acknowledge them. They include the first biography after his death, Prodigal Genius by John J O’Neill, Tesla’s autobiography (to be more accurate, it was a combination of his autobiography and a collection of previously printed magazine articles), My Inventions by Nikola Tesla, Wizard – The Life and Times of Nikola Tesla by Marc J. Seifer, The Man who Invented the Twentieth Century, and finally two television documentaries, Genius: Tesla versus Edison and Tesla: The American Experience made by the Public Broadcasting Network. For more information, please refer to the Reference guide at the back of the book.

A Child of Light – Tesla’s Early Years

Smiljan

Legend has it that on the night Nikola Tesla was born in Smiljan, a small village in what is now known as Croatia, a huge storm raged across the skies. At midnight, the exact moment the midwife pulled new-born Nikola, kicking and screaming into the world, a huge streak of lightning illuminated the room. He is a child of the storm, the midwife said. Tesla’s mother corrected her. No, he is a Child of Light.

Regardless of the authenticity of this version of events, Nikola Tesla, born on July 10th, 1856, possessed a life-long fascination with electricity - what it was, where it came from, and in particular, how to harness it. This fascination, which on numerous occasions spilled over into obsession, would dictate the course of Tesla’s entire life and is one of the reasons we now regard him as one of the founding fathers of our modern electrical systems.

Tesla's first encounter with electricity was with the static variety. As a three-year-old, Tesla loved to play with the family cat, Makac. He was petting him when he felt a tingling sensation in his arm and on his hand, and he marveled at the sparks underneath his fingers. When little Nikola asked his father what it was, his father answered with one word - electricity.

Nikola Tesla came from a large family; he had 3 sisters and one brother. His father, Milutin, was a pastor in the Greek Orthodox Church, and his mother was known as an inventor of practical applications to make life in a rural community easier.

In his autobiography, Tesla asserted that it was his mother who passed on her inquisitive traits and turned him into the curious inventor he became (Tesla, 2014, My Early Life, para. 8), but if we look at some of his interactions with his father, we can find plenty of influence from that area, too.

It was true that his mother encouraged Tesla as he discovered the world as a young boy and invented things