Nikola Tesla
- May 13, 2018
- 3 min read
How I came across this book: Google
Favorite Line from the book:
Seed of greatness exists in every human being. Whether it sprouts or not is our choice.
There is a boundary to men’s passion when they act from feelings; but none when they are under the influence of imagination.
When we think of some of the most prolific inventions of the 20th century such as electricity, X-ray or the radio waves: scientists like Edison, Roentgen or Marconi come to mind. However, Nikola Tesla was the common link behind all these inventions, who did not get enough credit for his work. Tesla redesigned Edison’s generator to make it far more efficient, durable and profitable. He discovered X-ray a decade before the German physicist Roentgen claimed it. Italian scientist, Marconi worked on Tesla’s patents and ideas to design the radio. Tesla was a man ahead of his time. Wireless communication, neon sign, tesla coil, cosmic rays, electric igniter, spark plug, bladeless turbine engine and air-friction speedometer are some of the brilliant discoveries by Tesla. Talented with a photographic memory, his imagination was so profound that he did not need to draw his scientific ideas. Unfortunately, he never profited from all his discoveries.
Born in Croatia, Nikola Tesla excelled in school. He could not complete university as he lost all his money in gambling. Despite having some brilliant ideas about producing electricity based on alternating current, no one was interested in funding his plans. Edison had the monopoly in the world of electricity during that period after the invention of candescent bulbs. Tesla moved to New York to discuss his ideas of alternating current with Edison, but his views were dismissed by Edison since it could have jeopardized Edison's monopoly, which was based on direct current. However, Edison still employed him. Tesla redesigned Edison’s inefficient generator but was never paid the promised amount of 50,000$. Tesla quit his job and later signed a contract with a businessman, Westinghouse. Tesla and Westinghouse won the bid against Edison and JP Morgan to light the Chicago World fair in 1893 as their concept of alternating current was much cheaper – famously known as the ‘war of the currents.’ The shining stars did not last too long for Tesla as JP Morgan manipulated the stocks and bought Westinghouse company on the brink of bankruptcy. Tesla tore his royalty contract to help out Westinghouse. This was not helped by the fact that Tesla’s lab caught fire in 1895 and destroyed most of his ongoing research projects. Tesla did not have any insurance for his lab. This incidence did not deter him from innovating and continuing to work on his plans. Tesla had some other brilliant ideas such as the world system of wireless communication and Aerial transportation (predecessor of VSTOL – Vertical Short Takeoff and Landing). His plans were always so grand that he had trouble finding investors for his prototype.
Tesla was a genius because he could imagine like no one else ever dared. Einstein said, “imagination is more important than knowledge because knowledge is limited to all we know and understand while imagination embraces the entire world and all there ever will be to know and understand.” Despite having more than 800 patents, Tesla died penniless because of lack of financial intelligence. He never cared for money and only followed his passion. I think this is where Tesla went wrong because if he had the financial vision, then he could have built all his prototypes which died with him. We live in a world designed by Tesla, but we will never know what kind of world he would have built if in an alternate universe he had read ‘Rich Dad Poor Dad’ and did not have to depend upon shrewd businessmen like JP Morgan to invest in his ideas!
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