Called a madman by some, a genius by others, and an enigma by nearly everyone, Nikola Tesla was possibly the greatest inventor the world has ever known. He was, without a doubt, a trail blazer who created astonishing, sometimes world-transforming, devices that were virtually without theoretical precedent. It was Tesla who introduced us to the fundamentals of robotry, computers, and missile science and helped pave the way for such space-age technologies as satellites, microwaves, beam weapons, and nuclear fusion. Yet, Tesla still remains one of the least-recognized scientific pioneers in history. Certainly he was one of the strangest of scientists - almost supernaturally gifted, erratic, flamboyant, and neurotic nearly to the point of madness. A dandy and popular man-about-town, he was admired by men as diverse as George Westinghouse and Mark Twain and adored by scores of society beauties. Yet his bewildering array of compulsions and phobias extended from such mundane subjects as food and clean linen to pearls and women's ears. He was fond of creating violent, neighborhood-threatening electrical storms in his apartment laboratory and once nearly knocked down a tall building by a attaching a mysterious ""black box"" to its side. ( He claimed he could have destroyed the entire planet with a similar device.) And because he kept so few notes, to this day we can only guess at the details of many of the fantastic scientific projects that occupied this fevered intellect. Margaret Cheney has written the definitive in-depth biography of this astonishing figure. From Tesla's childhood in Yugoslavia to his death in New York in the 1940's, Cheney both paints a compelling human portrait and chronicles a lifetime of discoveries that radically altered - and continue to alter - the world we live in. Cheney also casts important light on one of the central mysteries associated with Tesla - the whereabouts of the famous ""missing scientific papers"" that vanished at the time of the inventor's death.
Tesla is a riveting journey into the mind and life of the eccentric wizard who was Edison's enemy, Mark Twain's friend, J.
P Morgan's client, and hero and mentor to many of the 20th century's most famous scientists.
By:
Margaret Cheney
Imprint: Touchstone
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions:
Height: 214mm,
Width: 140mm,
Spine: 25mm
Weight: 338g
ISBN: 9780743215367
ISBN 10: 0743215362
Pages: 16
Publication Date: 05 November 2001
Audience:
General/trade
,
ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active
Contents Acknowledgments Introduction Modern Prometheus A Gambling Man Immigrants of Distinction At the Court of Mr. Edison The War of the Currents Begins Order of the Flaming Sword Radio High Society High Road, Low Road An Error of Judgment To Mars Robots Hurler of Lightning Blackout at Colorado Springs Magnificent and Doomed Ridiculed, Condemned, Combatted The Great Radio Controversy Midstream Perils The Nobel Affair Flying Stove Radar The Guest of Honor Pigeons Transitions The Birthday Parties Corks on Water Cosmic Communion Death and Transfiguration The Missing Papers The Legacy Bibliographical Essay Reference Notes Postscript Index
Reviews for Tesla: Man Out of Time
American Scientist <p>Excellent...a significant contribution to the recent history of science...informative and delightful to read.<p>
