Nikola Tesla 2
Nikola Tesla, two
Vocabulary
| neon | switch (2) | switch on/switch off |
| g-men | Philistine | far-reaching |
| invent | alternate | alternating current |
| laser | court (3) | remote control |
| sign (3) | vulnerable | agreement (2) |
| regard | monster | exceedingly |
| cruel | undertake | in this regard |
| shake | crash (2) | competition |
| act (3) | tower (2) | contribution |
| royalty | obsession | repercussion |
| suffer | tear up | tear/tore/torn |
| worth | structure | in order to |
| insane | Samson | mission (2) |
| volatile | effectively | turn on/turn off |
| engage | vision (2) | background |
| doom | venture | culmination |
| pond | goal (2) | send/sent/sent |
| honor | imagine | transatlantic |
| devil | provide | generosity |
| silent | pass (3) | draw upon |
| strange | meter (2) | bring forth |
| leap (2) | tolerate | momentum |
| limit | overlord | mid-construction |
| cancel | blackball | reciprocate |
| enemy | exclude | on your account (2) |
| falter | potential | nervous breakdown |
| regain | find out | salivate (2) |
| fate | limitless | stay on course |
| secret | fantastic | mad scientist |
| deliver | nemesis | leave behind |
| remain | patiently |
Video
Transcript
Nikola Tesla, Scientist and Investor: “I’ve done better than that.”
You’d think you’d know his name; every time you switch on a light or turn on
your radio his contributions are as far-reaching as those of Albert Einstein
Isaac Newton or even his nemesis Tom Edison.
This mysterious tall dark Serbian invented alternating current wireless
communication the modern electric motor basic laser and radar technology x-rays
neon robotics remote control and cellular technology.
Tesla was on a mission dedicated to unlocking the secrets of nature his greatest obsession he left little time for relationships or business. Nikola was exceedingly vulnerable in this regard; Wall Street monster JP Morgan was always
looking in the background, salivating over Tesla’s patents.
He wanted total control of the new power industry and would even crash Wall Street in order to shake out the competition. JP Morgan towered above all the Wall Street people like Samson over the Philistines there were repercussions.
One dark afternoon Tesla tore up his own royalty agreement with Westinghouse a
contract potentially worth billions of dollars in order to save their company from financial doom. This insane act of generosity was never reciprocated, even
after Westinghouse’s death in 1913.
Despite the volatile world of Finance in those days, Tesla was still courted by
the rich and powerful. Nikola would soon engage the biggest fish in the pond
while undertaking his greatest venture: Wardenclyffe.
This fantastic structure was the very culmination of Tesla’s vision to create a worldwide communication system for sending sound and pictures. The primary
goal was to beat Marconi for the honor of delivering the world’s first
transatlantic wireless signal.
By no accident, Tesla’s grant project was to be financed by the devil himself JP Morgan.
JP Morgan, Financier: “You’re a strange man indeed Tesla. After the papers are signed, you may draw upon the house of Morgan — but it’s important that I remain a silent partner. You understand what that means don’t you Mr. Tesla?”
But Nikola had a secret: the system could also electrify the world Wardenclyffe would provide limitless free energy everywhere for everybody.
When JP Morgan found out about this leap of technology, he wouldn’t tolerate it;
he knew Tesla could deliver, and the banker Overlord couldn’t put a meter on
it.
Nikola Tesla, Scientist and Inventor: “A man always has two reasons for
doing anything: a good reason and the real reason.”
Mid-construction, Morgan would cancel the contract and blackballed Tesla, effectively excluding him from any other investor.
Nikola Tesla, Scientist and Inventor: “Mr. Morgan are you going to leave me in a hole? I’ve made a thousand powerful enemies on your account. In a hundred years from now, this country would give me much for the first honor of transmitting power without wires.”
Wardenclyffe faltered, and Marconi sent his transatlantic signal.
Tesla would suffer a second nervous breakdown, and never again would he
regain his momentum as before.
But despite his cruel fate, Nikola stayed the course. Decade after decade would
pass and he would bring forth new fantastic inventions.
No one could begin to imagine what great secrets this mad scientist kept locked inside his head — no one except J Edgar Hoover and his g-men. They waited patiently for the great man to pass and were ready to take everything that Nikola left behind.
Questions
1. Because he was a great genius, Nikola Tesla is as famous as Leonardo va Vinci and Albert Einstein. True or false?
2. Did he make one invention? What were some of his achievements?
3. Was Telsa also a shrewd businessman and family man?
4. Nikola Tesla was greedy. The most important thing for him was money. Is this right or wrong?
5. Was JP Morgan a fellow engineer and inventor? Was he interested in scientific advances per se?
6. Why did Morgan annul his agreement with Tesla and halted funding?
7. Tesla had greater amounts of enthusiasm, motivation and energy later in his life. Is this correct or incorrect?
8. Did he publish all his ideas, theories and designs before his passing?
A. Did you learn about Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla in school history?
B. Who are your favorite inventors, engineers or scientists?
C. Do you or your friends have ideas for an invention or discovery?
D. Is there a secret for inventiveness? How can inventiveness and creativity be fostered?
E. Can people and governments do anything to foster inventions and creativity? What could they do?
