Luna Tail|Lunacy, Crabiness, Life

Been watching a show this evening on the History Channel (okay yeah I’m a woman.. sometimes I watch the History Channel!), Modern Marvels, about Nikola Tesla. I’ve always wanted to know more about him, as his story fascinates me. This show, also, fascinates me.

The point that I found most interesting is that Thomas Edison.. who we all grew up learning was the inventor of the light bulb and a major player in the distribution of electricity, actually may have stolen his ideas from Tesla. That was not suggested in the show, but I’ve heard the rumors. Tesla came to America and began employment with Thomas Edison. Edison told Tesla that he would pay Tesla $50,000 for his work and his patents (this is my interpretation, so forgive me if I get it wrong) and Edison did not pay him. So Tesla quit and went and dug ditches for a year.

Afterward Tesla had the opportunity to light up the World’s Fair with his Alternating Current. But he was not allowed to use Edison’s light bulb, because Edison had it patented. So Tesla had to invent a new bulb and do it in six months. Well, he succeeded and powered the whole World’s Fair. He was pretty amazing.

He had a bunch of patents and we, pretty much, a genius. He is becoming better known now, but when I was younger I hardly heard about him. Only when I worked at the Hansen Planetarium here in Salt Lake, and hung out with the astronomers, and learned of the Tesla Coil. They had one at the Planetarium and it was pretty impressive to watch.

So, credit where credit is due, Tesla was the major player in powering our world. And it should be commonly known. Slap Edison for not paying him what he promised!