02| Nikola Tesla

Nikola Tesla was born on July 10, 1856, in Smiljan (then Austrian Empire, now Croatia). From a young age, he showed exceptional abilities in mathematics and visualization, claiming he could design machines entirely in his mind. He studied engineering in Graz and Prague before emigrating to the United States in 1884.

In America, he briefly worked for Thomas Edison, but they clashed over electrical systems. Tesla defended alternating current (AC), while Edison supported direct current (DC). With the backing of George Westinghouse, Tesla’s AC system became the global standard because it transmitted electricity more efficiently over long distances. His induction motor and polyphase system transformed electrical engineering and powered projects like the Niagara Falls hydroelectric plant.

Tesla also experimented with wireless energy, radio waves, and high-voltage electricity. Although Guglielmo Marconi is often credited with inventing radio, Tesla’s earlier patents were later recognized as fundamental.

Personality-wise, Tesla was brilliant, disciplined, and idealistic, believing science should benefit humanity. However, he was also eccentric and obsessive, working long hours, avoiding germs, and showing unusual habits. He never married and lived a solitary life in later years.

He was tall (about 1.88 m), slim, elegant, and always well dressed in formal suits. His sharp features and intense gaze gave him a distinguished, almost enigmatic presence. He died in New York in 1943, leaving a legacy as one of the pioneers of modern electrical engineering.