2009 July, 11th

Phil Butler

Friday was th 153rd birthday of Nikola Tesla, arguably the man to whom modern technology owes so many successes. It is difficult to narrow down the numbers and types of electrical innovations that Tesla originated, but it is certain that AC power is his alone. In controversial associations and competition with Thomas Edison, who as it turns out was more of a “patent pirate” than an inventor, Tesla was, and is, clearly overlooked in favor of other scientists. From cosmic rays to radio waves, Nikola Tesla was perhaps the most brilliant, and sadly, overlooked scientist of modern times. Only now has he begun to receive the recognition he so well deserves.

Tesla was born in the village of Smilyan, in what is now Croatia. Attending the Austrian Polytechnic Institute in Graz, and later the Charles-Ferdinand University in Prague. Purported to have had a photographic memory, Tesla even once worked for Edison at his famed Machine Works. There, Tesla helped Edison perfect several patents which had been problematic for the famed American inventor, and after having been “duped” over the payment he would receive, and refused a raise to $25 per week, Tesla left. It was then that Tesla, in association with Westinghouse, perfected what is now known as AC (alternating current) power.

Many disciplines owe so much to this brilliant man. Perhaps the most interesting story about Tesla has to do with his suspected involvement in the Philadelphia experiment, where the US Navy engaged scientists to essentially make matter disappear. According to Dr. Alfred D. Bielek, one of the principals in the project, Dr. Albert Einstein, Dr. John von Neumann, and Dr. Nikola Tesla were also instrumental in the highly/legnedary project. Using what Einstein called the Unified Theory, witnesses and some experts claimed that a ship and its crew, the USS Eldridge, either completely disappeared, that time was frozen, of that the ship/and/or crew traveled through time.

Did the USS Eldridge travel in time?

Regardless of the validity of the Tesla legend, it is certain that he was one of the founders of modern electrical theory, and a crucial part of technology’s advances today. In wishing the man Happy Birthday, a day late, we wish to acknowledge all those, that for one reason or another, suffer to bad or no publicity. Tesla, if he had received the same accolades and support as Edison, might possibly have discovered still more groundbreaking science. Just after his death in a hotel room in 1943, ironically only 2 months after the Philadelphia experiment, Tesla was officially noted as the inventor of radio. I wonder if he is not out there in the future somewhere inventing still more cosmically significant machines – only thinking back on Earth entering the electronic age. Maybe?

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About the Author

Phil Butler is editor-in-chief of Everything PR and senior partner at Pamil Visions PR. He’s a widely cited authority on beta startups, search engines and public relations issues, and he has covered tech news since 2004. Phil wrote in the past for ReadWriteWeb, Mashable, Profy, SitePoint, Search Engine Journal, AltSearchEngines. Follow Phil on Twitter or send him an email at phil [at] pamil-visions [dot] com.

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