The Serbian-American inventor Nikola Tesla is well-known for his work on alternating current electrical systems. His contributions to the fields of electromagnetism and wireless radio communications have made him world-famous. This child prodigy had made the world wonder during his era. However, his life was not an easy one. Even with his sharp merit, he was a terrible businessman. Nonetheless, he was one of the most influential inventors of the 20th century, whose discoveries were way ahead of his time.
So, today let us take a moment to appreciate this great innovator.
Birth & Early Life
Niclas Tesla was born on July 10, 1856, in the village of Smiljan, the Austrian Empire. His father was Milutin Tesla, an orthodox priest, and his mother was Đuka Mandic, an inventive homemaker. From an early age, Nikola had an eidetic memory. He also had a knack for electrical inventions, like her mother, who was fond of making household appliances.
Nikola received his early education in German. In 1870, he took admission at ‘Higher Real Gymnasium’ in Karlovac. After graduating from the four-year course in three years, Nikola attended ‘Austrian Polytechnic’ in Graz, Austria, in 1875. However, his addiction to gambling in his second year ruined his studies, and he could not get a degree.
Profession
Nikola started working as a draftsman in the Central Telegraph Office in Budapest in 1881. Later, he became the chief electrician at the Budapest Telephone Exchange. After a year, he joined Continental Edison Company in France as a designer of electrical equipment.
In 1884, he went to New York to work for Thomas Edison and help him redesign the direct current generators. However, being betrayed by Edison, he resigned from the job. In 1887 Nikola established the Tesla Electric Company with Alfred S. Brown and attorney Charles F. Peck.
The company helped Tesla work on alternating current. He created an induction run on AC and also got the patent. In 1989, Tesla came first discovered electromagnetic radiation by Heinrich Hertz. Influenced by this theory, he established his laboratory and invested his time and energy in numerous experiments, including the ‘Tesla Coil’ and carbon button lamp. Nikola founded his laboratory n 1899 to provide free wireless electricity throughout the world. He conducted several experiments in the facility. However, the lack of budget made him sell his laboratory.
Inventions
The most significant contribution of Nikola Tesla is the modern alternating current (AC) electricity supply system. Apart from that, Tesla Coil, a circuit for transforming energy into extremely high voltage charges, creating powerful electrical fields, is one of his notable works.
He was also well-known as the ‘father of the radio’ for his assistance in radio development. His contribution to the evolution of radar technology, X-ray technology, and the rotating magnetic field is unforgettable.
Awards & Achievements
In his lifetime, Nikola Tesla has achieved several awards. Some of them are the Elliott Cresson Medal, John Scott Medal, Order of the White Eagle, I Class, and more. In addition to that, the SI unit of magnetic flux density is Tesla, named in his honor. He was featured on the cover of ‘TIME’ magazine on the occasion of his 75th birthday. The well-known automotive company, Tesla, of the Billionaire Elon Musk, also has the same name as his.
Personal Life
Nikola Tesla was a person of great virtues. He was a workaholic and used to spend 15 hours of the day working. Nikola also walked for eight to ten miles each day. However, he did not have many friends and was single his whole life. With an outstanding photographic memory, he could also speak eight languages. Nikola died in a hotel room in New York City of coronary thrombosis on January 7, 1943.