Nikola Tesla, Greatest Inventor Ever

[Magical]

There was a man named Nikola Tesla, IMO, the world's greatest inventor.
He is credited with inventing the whole AC power system now in use and is well-known for the Tesla coil, a high frequency, high-voltage, air-core coil. Tesla invented radio, wireless transmission of power, many motors, Tesla turbine, Tesla oscillator, and hundreds of other revolutionary devices. If one concept were to describe Tesla principles, I would have to say it would be 'Resonance'.

What is less known about Tesla, and some say 'suppressed information' is that:
Tesla had a dynamic theory of gravity and his lifelong dream was electropropulsion.
Some, like William Lyne, in his book Pentagon Aliens, claim this is the basis for today's 'UFOs'.
Tesla claimed he had conquered the problem of energy generation from the 'ether'.
Tesla claimed to have modified a Pierce-Arrow car and driven it using electricity from the 'ether'.
Tesla thought Einstein's theory of relativity was a whole bunch of BS.
Tesla had many other inventions that became 'classified' after his death (some say by poisoning).
Some say HAARP (weather modification), particle beam weapons, etc are based on Tesla technology.

The truth is hard to discern and prove, absent working devices, but I personally doubt this great inventor would make claims that were not true.

Modern physics uses the words, Zero Point Energy, vacuum fluctuations, virtual photons, etc. to describe an 'active' vacuum. Sounds a heck of alot like the old ether theories, which were supposedly discredited by the Michelson-Morley experiment.

With an 'active' vacuum, the concept that no system can generate more power than the 'stimulus or input' to the system, goes out the window. There is still 'conservation of energy', its just that the energy comes from the vacuum.

Has the suppression of 'vacuum energy' as claimed by Tesla, caused the unnecessary destruction of nature? Has all this burning of fossil fuels been due to the greed of those who control the energy pipelines? Have 'electro-propulsive' flying machines, based on Tesla techology been the basis of all the UFO sightings since the 1940's?

Were Tesla alive today, I suspect he would answer, YES, to all of the above.
The ultimate tragedy of man...destruction of all that is precious for the greed of a few.

[ret5hd]

1. i think your user name suits you.

[Magical]

2. Is that the extent....

Of your 'knowledge' and 'thought' ?
Deep thinker, you are.
Personal insults are the last refuge of the uneducated.
Read a book.

[MindPilot]

9. This is not the place for new or controversial ideas.

The dismissive nature of some of the replies to your post are typical. This group seems to attract those who believe that any eco-friendly energy technology--from electric cars to thermal de-polymerization--that is not already fully developed and economically viable in the poorest of third world countries is not worth pursuing.

And woe shall betide you if you dare to question the aforementioned wisdom.

[Buzz Clik]

13. Ah. UFOs. Einstein's theory was BS. The "ether". Those new ideas.

:+ :silly:

[lynnertic]

16. touchy!

how do you know that was an insult? I didn't read it that way.

If no offense is taken, none can be given.

[MindPilot]

3. I agree, Tesla was one smart mofo.

However many of his fringe science claims are just that--claims. While he may have touched on technologies that have yet to be developed he was an engineer and inventor, not an alchemist. He was a contemporary of industrialists like Edison & Westinghouse both of whom had few limitations on what they would do for money. They exploited Tesla's work for their financial gain; do you really think they would have successfully suppressed his work at the same time?

On the other hand, when my first Tesla coil--which I built at about age 13--launched a piece of ALUMINUM pipe with enough force to crack the ceiling plaster, my mind opened a bit.

[mediaman007]

4. Right On! I read Tesla's biography by Margaret Cheney, based on

my dad's recommendation. My dad thought that Tesla was the smartest person ever to live. He believed that corporate America did a lot to silence Tesla and to brand him as being "different."

If corporate America had its way, we would be powering our cities with Direct Current, which Edison owned. Tesla was Edison's rival and unlike Edison, Tesla did his own research.

Further note: I understand that when IBM and Apple were creating personal computers in the 1970's and 80's, they tried to patent some ideas only to find out that Tesla had patented them around 1910!

Tesla is the man!

[MindPilot]

5. Few people know that it was that very controversy, AC or DC?

which resulted in the development of the Electric Chair as an execution device.

Edison's primary selling point for his DC was that it was much safer than the AC promoted by George Westinghouse so he held public demonstrations electrocuting pigs. That wasn't quite dramatic enough so they obtained a condemned prisoner to experiment with. Ironically when the Electric Chair was in widespread use, it killed with DC.

[Sequoia]

6. He's my hero that's for sure.

Around last Christmas I picked up that bio of him and was so amazed. Here are some bookmarks. One thing that knocked my over was Tesla claimed to be responsible for the incident in Siberia when all the trees were burned and flattened. Some say meteor, he says it was his "ray" machine. Check it out.

Not only that, he was a firm believer in life on other planets and the only reason the aliens weren't in touch with us was because we weren't up to par with their technology. Something along those lines.

http://www.frank.germano.com/nikolatesla.htm

http://www.viewzone.com/tesla.html

Since learning about Tesla and how Edison was such a jerk towards him, I never think of Edison as the great inventor we were taught about as children. Edison toed (towed) the line big time.

[NickB79]

7. There seems to be a pattern here

"Claimed"

"Thought"

Some say"

"I suspect"

Yep, some cold, hard facts right there.

[OKIsItJustMe]

8. Tesla

To say that Tesla was an "eccentric" genius just doesn't do him justice. He was obsessive compulsive, with a serious case of attention deficit disorder.

I highly recommend reading Tesla: Man Out of Time, and ignoring the pseudo-scientific twaddle that's been written about the man.

[Magical]

10. ADD ? Right....

People with Attention deficit disorder don't get 700+ patents and invent whole industries.
I've read Man Out of Time...and a dozen other publication on Tesla.
Tesla was a pure genius who could model stuff in his head before building it.
Yes, he was a bit eccentric, a germophobe, who slept maybe 2-4 hours a night.
Tesla was painted as a 'kook' to discredit him.

Pseudo science, Pathological Science (coined by Irving Langmuir), etc. are all terms like 'conspiracy theorist' designed to attack anyone who suggests that physics has made a heck of a lot more progress than has been revealed.

There are shysters in the 'free energy' field, but Tesla wasn't one of them.
Too much of his work is classified and unavailable to benefit mankind.
Believe what you want...but you're misinformed.

[OKIsItJustMe]

15. "People with Attention deficit disorder don't get 700+ patents and invent whole industries."

Tesla was a genius, with a habit of exploring all sorts of wonderful things, but he wasn't very good about bringing them to fruition, there was always something else to pursue. (That's why I say he had ADD.)

People with ADD can have an amazing focus for a period of time. They just seem to have lots of uncompleted projects.


Here's what claims to be a complete list of his patents:
http://www.hbci.com/~wenonah/new/tesla.htm

Here's another list:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Tesla_patents

Here's a collection of US Patents:
http://www.mall-usa.com/BPCS/grant_tesla.html

Another list:
http://www.corrosion-doctors.org/Biographies/TeslaBio-Patents.htm

All fall well short of 700.


When I read claims of Tesla inventions which defy the known laws of physics, I don't believe them (these are what I call "pseudo-science.")

[hunter]

11. He was a very bright nut obsessed with electricity.

Some of his ideas worked, many didn't.

Dreams don't have to correspond to any reality.

There's quite a bit about electricity Tesla didn't know, and that took him down many blind alleys.

He's the sort of guy who becomes a Catholic Saint. If he'd had that bent (he was celibate, which would have made it easier for him to be a Priest...) then for sure people would be attributing all sorts of miracles to him!

[Pab Sungenis]

12. Yes, but please remember that Tesla was insane.

He suffered from visual and auditory hallucinations all his life. He may have had many bouts of genius (like when he conceived of the design for an AC power generator in his head and drew it in the dirt) and been a visionary in many areas, but some of his ideas were...well...kooky.

I'd still take him, insanity and all, over the other "inventor" he was up against, Edison, who just bumbled into his few practical inventions.

[skids]

14. I just want to know...

...whether anyone ever built/tested his improved proposal for the DC homopolar generator. The one with two disks with opposing Bs attached by a conductive belt to remove the majority of the friction. I see commercial homopolar generators don't seem to have used this approach. It seems a simple enough experiment.