Nikola Tesla essay
Nikola Tesla remains one of the most mystical and dramatic figures of engineering. His discoveries to a large extent shaped the power of technology which changed the world in the 20th century. Tesla’s thoughts and ideas laid the background of industrial revolution and it would not be an exaggeration to state that Tesla was the superman of engineering in the previous century. What is more impressive, Tesla’s papers and records contained more discoveries, some of them are not fully understood or utilized yet.
The life story of Nikola Tesla is very dramatic and full of controversies and struggle. Many of Tesla’s discoveries and achievements were only recognized after his death. During his 86 years of life, Tesla made important contributions to such fields as radio technology, electric power and devices, electricity transmission, etc (Bergstresser 6). Some of his discoveries and statements were intensively criticized by the scientists; however, Tesla managed to prove the value of his ideas by creating working prototypes and implementing the newly discovered principles in new technologies.
Overall, Tesla applied for more than 700 patents worldwide (Bergstresser 43). Many of his discoveries were not patented, because he believed that knowledge should be universal and should be shared between all people. The goal of this paper is to research the life and discoveries of Nikola Tesla, outline his key discoveries, discuss disputed discoveries and patents assigned to other people, and to consider the theories and papers which were not yet adopted by the scientific community.
- Biography of Nikola Tesla
Nikola Tesla was born on July 10, 1856 in Yugoslavia (now – Croatia), in the family of an Orthodox priest and a talented mother who was the inventor of household appliances (Martin 17). Tesla received fundamental technical education in polytechnic school of Graz, and then received a degree in Prague University (Martin 19). First job of Tesla was the position of an electrical engineer in a telephone company, located in Budapest; later on, he moved to Paris to work for a branch of Edison company. In these years, Tesla made his first discovery – induction motor powered by alternating current, and was actually trying to attract investors. However, the investors in Europe were reluctant to support his idea, and in 1884 Tesla made a decision to move to America (Martin 44).
He started working for Edison, and shared his ideas with him; however, Edison found his ideas terrible. However, Edison appreciated Tesla’s outstanding engineering talent, and suggested him to improve Edison’s DC motors for $50,000 (Cheney 254). Tesla desperately wanted to earn money to construct a working prototype of his discovery, but after he managed to task, Edison turned his promises into a joke. Since that time, they have become opponents, and these tensions continued throughout all their lives. Edison tried to disprove Tesla’s ideas, but alternating current became the standard already in a decade.
When Tesla found a sagacious investor, George Westinghouse, he developed a system allowing to generate alternating current and to transmit it to long distances. A very significant contribution of Tesla into the modern technology was the creation of a hydroelectric generation station at Niagara waterfall. The system transmitted the generated power using alternating current to Buffalo. Tesla’s systems were showed to the public at a World Exposition in 1893, and since that time his fame has become worldwide (Cheney 289).
During the course of his life, Tesla received numerous awards and honors: honor degrees of Yale University and Columbia University, Edison medal and other awards. He never received the Nobel prize, although he was nominated to it, along with Edison (Cheney 350). Since both of them did not agree to receive the prize together, and both were trying to diminish the competitor’s achievements, the prize was not awarded to any of them.
The peak of Tesla’s career was in the 1900-1905 period, when he convinced J.P. Morgan to support his research (Burgan 97). A large tower intended for power and signal transmission was built on Long Island, but its construction was never completed: Morgan withdrew his funds, and the tower was demolished. Although Tesla continued working and preparing the background for the idea of wireless transmission of power, his financial position deteriorated and the rest of his life was spent in poverty. Nikola Tesla died in 1943 in New Yorker hotel (Burgan 15). After his death, all his papers, research and laboratory were confiscated by FBI, and many of his discoveries might remain unknown. Some of his papers and research are nowadays located in the Tesla Museum, located in Belgrad (Cheney 22).
- Tesla’s key discoveries
Tesla’s first major discovery was the rotating magnetic field. This field allowed to use the alternating current instead of the direct current, which was widely used in the end of 1880s (Colladay 58). During two years Tesla was working on the refutation of his professor’s statement that it was not possible to create a motor powered not by direct, but by alternating current. The scientists of that time believed it was impossible; however, in 1882 Tesla discovered that rotating magnetic field would allow to run an engine using the alternating current (and without converting it to direct current) (Colladay 63).
Second great discovery is related to the first one: motor powered by alternating current (AC). Tesla had designed the model of the motor in his mind, and implemented this solution in 1883 (Colladay 65). In this motor, the rotating magnetic field was used to move an armature around. Alternating current created self-reversing magnetic poles, which needed no mechanical support for this movement, compared to motors powered by direct current. This discovery opened path for much more efficient and functional motors which are widely used nowadays.
Third famous Tesla’s discovery, which was shown to the public in New York laboratory and had great success, is Tesla’s coil (Cheney 117). This discovery was based on the important principle also discovered by Tesla – polyphase alternating currents. Polyphase system denotes a method of electrical power distribution where at least three conductors with alternating currents are used to transmit the power (Cheney 124). The advantage of polyphase system is that it is more efficient with regard to the wire requirements, costs and effectiveness of power transmission. Currently the transmission of electricity to long distances and effective electric motors exist due to Tesla’s discovery of polyphase alternating currents. Using this idea, Tesla in 1890 created a high-voltage transformer, which significantly impressed both scientists and the general public (Cheney 138).
Finally, Tesla invented radio transmission (tuned radio circuits) and virtually all elements of current radio technologies are also either his discoveries or are based on his ideas. Tesla’s first radio transmission took place in 1897, and reached across the distance of 40 kilometers (Colladay 91). In fact, Tesla invented al main elements of radio transmission technology, but the patent for radio transmission was granted to Guglielmo Marconi (Colladay 91). After Tesla’s death, his patent application was reconsidered as primary, but the fame already belonged to Marconi.
The invention of wireless (radio) transmission is only one example of how Tesla was receiving less credit than he deserved. Another vivid example is the invention of X-rays: in 1856 Tesla published an article about X-rays, and almost at the same time, Roentgen patented X-rays, while Tesla never attempted to claim his rights for this discovery (Martin 230). It is also supposed that Tesla invented the first solar, although this discovery is also not associated with his name.
Among other Tesla’s achievements, there are findings in electrotherapeutics and in high frequency heating. Radio-guided ships and torpedoes were invented by this prominent engineer in 1898, and Tesla also managed to forecast the invention of radar in 1917 (Martin 307). Such inventions as wireless boat with remote control, wireless bulbs powered by the energy of the Earth, neon and fluorescent lights also belong to Tesla. His patents and findings related to such spheres as radiant energy, turbines, wireless lighting, telegeodynamics, dynamic gravity theory, magnifying transmitters, etc (Martin 415). His patents cover such areas as dynamo electric machines, alternate current motors, electromagnetic motors, AC/Dc conversion, electric generators, transformers, lighting systems, production of ozone, production of high-frequency currents, circuit controllers, utilization of radiant energy, transmission of electric energy through natural mediums, aerial transportation, etc (Martin 416).
This famous scientist also made some very significant military inventions: electromagnetic shells, beam projector for projecting concentrated energy on natural media, teleforce weapon (Tesla was working on it, but different sources diverge in conclusions regarding its existence), machine for generating earthquakes and even a device for recording extraterrestrial signals. However, many of these discoveries are controversial, and their existence is doubted by a number of sources (Martin 424).
Conclusion
Tesla’s life story is one of the most vivid examples of a great genius and a true passion for science. Despite all obstacles, Tesla made a huge contribution into modern science and technology, laid the foundation of modern industrial revolution by discovering rotating magnetic field and applying alternating electric current for powering motors and power transmission. Construction of hydroelectric power stations, creation of power electric transformers, discovery of radio transmission, exploration of terrestrial stationary waves… Nikola Tesla, without doubt, was a genius whose discoveries revolutionized the science of the 20th century, and, perhaps, his papers and research have enough potential to make a similar revolution in the 21st century, if his legacy would be properly used.
