Tesla Fact vs. Fiction: Why the Public Perception is Wrong

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  • čas přidán 22. 04. 2018
  • Almost everything commonly told about Tesla is wrong! He didn't invent AC, he didn't battle Edison over AC vs. DC, he didn't even have a rivalry with Edison, he didn't want to give everyone free electricity and he wasn't a Physics genius! Referencing primary sources I can show you why we have such a perverted view of Tesla's real accomplishments and life.
    If you want to read this as an article (with lots of references) click here:
    kathylovesphysics.wordpress.c...
    I have a lot of videos about different elements in the history of electricity, including:
    Faraday discovering induction • How Faraday Made Elect...
    The invention of generators: • Where Electricity Come...
    Edison creating the light bulb empire: • Thomas Edison Biograph...
    The AC/DC war: • Physics of "The Curren...
    Hertz discovering radio: • How Heinrich Hertz Dis...
    The Discovery of the Tesla Coil & How it Works: • How Does a Tesla Coil ...
    Marconi Creating a Wireless Empire: • Who Invented Wireless?...
    The lovely modern tesla coil movie comes with permission from Greg at hotstreamer.deanostoybox.com/g... He has some great advice if you are crazy enough to try to make some of these machines yourself.
    And, as always, thanks to Kim Nalley for the great music.

Komentáře • 3,9K

  • @Kathy_Loves_Physics
    @Kathy_Loves_Physics  Před rokem +167

    If you want more details and are interested in WHY these myths became so popular: I made another video on the subject which you can see here:

  • @elbruces
    @elbruces Před rokem +1

    There's a broader thought problem involved here. Nearly every great inventor or philosopher or whatever is thought of as being completely right about all their idea, or completely wrong about them. In fact, every great figure you could name throughout history had a couple of good ideas (at most) and then a whole bunch of others that were flat-out wrong. They aren't noteworthy in history for being "great" people who are always right, but only for having come up with those one or two good ideas. That's a distinction that more people need to consciously remind themselves of whenever considering the history of ideas.

  • @zsimon4267
    @zsimon4267 Před 2 lety +786

    "Tesla's devices are a gateway drug for many electrical engineers, and that is not a small thing." I do love it

  • @musicurio
    @musicurio Před 2 lety +932

    We may be a little disappointed in having some favourite myths "busted" but it is far more satisfying to see credit given to the ones that deserve it. Thank you Kathy.

  • @stevenskorich7878
    @stevenskorich7878 Před 2 lety +605

    We have turned Tesla into a Merlin-like figure who fills a need for Secret Knowledge That The Man Is Concealing. He was a great electrical engineer, a not-so-great businessman, and a profound eccentric.

  • @densealloy
    @densealloy Před rokem +565

    Westinghouse was not only a brilliant engineer but a visionary & savvy businessman who took care of his workers. He holds gobs of patents that changed industry, many still used today in the railroad industry and natural gas distribution. It is an absolute shame how his contributions have been somewhat erased for a narrative. I can't count the number of times I've corrected people about the "current wars" over the last 25 years. Thanks for making this. Have a wonderful day.

  • @arpadkovacs2116
    @arpadkovacs2116 Před 2 lety +197

    After reading a book about Tesla, I came to the same conclusions. I realized, however, that people don't seem to want to hear about it. It is unbelieveable how far can reality and perception be from each other. I am surprised you have not been stoned. 😁

  • @muzvid
    @muzvid Před 2 lety +164

    My Dad was an electrical engineer specializing in control systems for AC motors. He's long argued that Tesla's gotten more credit than he deserves, but he's never taken the time to explain his assertion. Thanks for doing so!

  • @Santiago-sh3cq
    @Santiago-sh3cq Před rokem +2

    Sounds like something an Edison sympathizer would say.

  • @networknomad5600
    @networknomad5600 Před rokem +1

    So... Tesla was just a very productive "good vibes" sensationalist TikTok influencer.

  • @josephjankowski1153
    @josephjankowski1153 Před rokem +31

    Thank you so much for combatting this nonsense. The worst thing about this whole Tesla vs. Edison pop culture meme is that people have come to despise Edison, who was a brilliant inventor and Entrepreneur who overcame a disability to make significant contributions to history.

  • @edshort1138
    @edshort1138 Před 2 lety +427

    It is so very time consuming to skip summaries and read all the relevant Original sources. But this video is an excellent example of how important it is for someone take on the research burden and share her findings, to improve our access to accurate history. Thanks Kathy.

  • @Nighthawkinlight
    @Nighthawkinlight Před rokem +504

    Very good video. I came across several of these documents myself some years ago when researching Edison, but I didn't feel like kicking this particular beehive. I'm glad you did though. We're all a lot more easily deceived than we realize, by both internal and external pressures.

  • @TheChzoronzon
    @TheChzoronzon Před rokem +223

    Thanks. I have been "battling" this nonsense for years now...

  • @DownhillAllTheWay
    @DownhillAllTheWay Před rokem +496

    Since learning about Tesla during my time at college in the late 60's, I have seen the myth of Tesla grow unchecked on the internet. I don't know why this is. He was certainly a bright guy, and came up with some nifty gadgets (I really like the one-way fluid valve with no moving parts), but it never seemed to me that he was anywhere near as creditworthy as his myth would have us believe. It's really good to see somebdoy shine a light on him.

  • @harino1066
    @harino1066 Před rokem +49

    i was a young man lecturing people on how misunderstood and brilliant Tesla was. general knowledge overtime tempered my attitude. this video brings a mystic fantasy masquerading as conspiracy back into reality. thank you so much.

  • @solidpython4964
    @solidpython4964 Před 2 lety +53

    The thing that made me feel bad for Tesla when I remember researching him wasn’t really all that “warring” with Edison supposedly, but the fact that Tesla gave up on his royalties deals with Westinghouse which cost him a lot of money, and he ended up growing old sad and alone and without much comfort that he should’ve had given his accomplishments.

  • @RiverBottom22
    @RiverBottom22 Před rokem +63

    I have that same feeling in the pit of my stomach as when I learned that the Santa Claus I loved so dearly was actually my grandfather dressed up in a homemade Santa suit.

  • @michaelweiske702
    @michaelweiske702 Před rokem +190

    I don't think we can say that tesla was terrible at physics: he has some inventions involving fluid mechanics that are fascinating to look into, namely the tesla valve and the tesla turbine. The tesla valve acts like a valve but contains no moving parts, great for reducing failure, and the tesla turbine uses fluid viscosity to generate power and is used nowadays as a pump for viscous fluids like sewage.

  • @loganfisher3138
    @loganfisher3138 Před rokem +21

    Hey Kathy. I just want to say that as a physicist I really appreciate all the work you put into this channel. While my focus is on advancing out knowledge into the future, the history of science is grossly underappreciated and is incredibly important to developing a stronger understanding of why we do things certain ways.