Nikola Tesla and Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla are regarded as giant scientists of their time. Notably, Edison and Tesla’s inventions changed the history and direction of electrical engineering. Their contributions to electrical engineering inspired the modern world to a significant extent. For example, they are used as reference points in the field of electrical engineering. Electrical engineers in the fourth industrial revolution use their ideas as bases to build their inventions. Chiefly, Edison and Tesla can be compared on the bases of their inventions, early careers, and the war of currents.
Firstly, Edison and Tesla can be compared through the innovations and inventions that they made. For instance, Edison was a businessman and a competent inventor based in the United States of America. He made major contributions in the field of direct current (DC). Importantly, Edison is best remembered for the invention of the electric light bulb that ruled out kerosene ramps (Green, 2018). Other devices that he developed include a motion picture camera and a phonograph. On the other hand, Tesla is regarded as an inventor in Serbian America. Unlike Edison, Tesla majored in both mechanical and electric engineering. Also, Tesla was a futurist and physicist who designed a modern alternating current electrical supply system (Green, 2018).
Secondly, Edison and Tesla differ in their early careers. For example, Edison was working as a telegraph operator. At 19 years of age, Edison was worked in the Associated Press bureau. He was fired for spilling sulphuric acid on the floor (DiLallo, 2015). He started his inventions in Newark when he created a phonograph and an automatic repeater. On the other hand, Tesla worked at Budapest Telephone Exchange. In the same company, he was made the chief electrician and later moved to Edison Company where he was improving electrical equipment (Vujic, et al. 2001).
Lastly, both Edison and Tesla were involved in a famous war of the currents. In the late 1880s, Edison and Tesla’s views differed concerning the most appropriate and effective current (McPherson, 2012). Edison was supporting direct current whereas Tesla was supporting alternating current. As a result, Edison was spreading misguided information that presented the dangers of alternating current. However, Tesla’s AC worn during the introduction of the Niagara Falls power plant in New York.
Overall, both Edison and Tesla made a fair amount of contributions in the field of electrical engineering. For instance, Edison is the father of a long-lasting electric bulb, repeaters, and phonograph. Tesla, alternating current shaped the modern world in a significant way. Furthermore, their early careers inspired them to invest in electric engineering. Although, there were involved in a currents war where alternating current worn, both Edison’s and Tesla’s inventions are highly used in the contemporary world.
References
Vujic, J., Marincic, A., Ercegovac, M., & Milovanovic, B. (2001, September). Nikola tesla: 145 years of visionary ideas. In 5th International Conference on Telecommunications in Modern Satellite, Cable and Broadcasting Service. TELSIKS 2001. Proceedings of Papers (Cat. No. 01EX517) (Vol. 1, pp. 323-326). IEEE.
Green, S. (2018). Thomas Alva Edison and Nikola Tesla. Enslow Publishing, LLC.
McPherson, S. S. (2012). War of the currents: Thomas Edison vs Nikola Tesla. Twenty-First Century Books.
DiLallo, M. (2015, October 10). Tesla vs. Edison: Why Edison is revered, while Tesla is still a relative unknown. The Motley Fool. Retrieved July 20, 2020, from https://www.fool.com/investing/general/2015/10/10/tesla-vs-edison-why-edison-is-revered-while-tesla.aspx