Nikola Tesla, often considered an underrated genius, made significant contributions to science and technology, including causing an earthquake, inventing a deadly weapon, and wirelessly transmitting electricity. Born in 1856 in Croatia, Tesla was known for his brilliant mind from a young age, developing revolutionary ideas and inventions. Despite facing financial struggles and opposition from contemporaries like Edison, Tesla's work on alternating current and other innovations had a profound impact on modern civilization. His later years were marked by eccentric behavior and financial difficulties, but his legacy as a pioneering inventor remains influential.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. Nikola Tesla was born in 1856 in a small Croatian village.
2. He was born at midnight, and a lightning storm was occurring at the time.
3. Tesla's mother had an excellent memory and never attended school, but was able to recite entire volumes of poetry from memory.
4. Tesla started secondary school at the age of 10 and had several revolutionary ideas.
5. As a teenager, Tesla developed plans for a flying machine that would draw energy from a vacuum.
6. Tesla was expelled from university for leading an unstable lifestyle.
7. He worked as a draftsman in a telegraph office and spent his free time reading books on physics.
8. Tesla invented the alternating current engine while walking home from the library.
9. He worked for a telegraph company and later for Edison's company, but was not appreciated for his ideas.
10. Tesla presented his idea for alternating current to Edison, but was rejected.
11. He started looking for sponsors to finance his research on alternating current.
12. Tesla built a power plant at Niagara Falls and worked on the transmission lines.
13. He invented a remotely controlled boat and presented it to the military, but was met with skepticism.
14. Tesla moved to Colorado Springs and built a laboratory to study lightning and electricity.
15. He caused an earthquake in Manhattan while working on an invention to prevent earthquakes.
16. Tesla lit 250 incandescent lamps 40 kilometers away from him, transmitting electricity wirelessly.
17. He constructed a receiver to listen to radio waves emitted by the stars.
18. Tesla lost the patent office race to Marconi for the invention of the radio.
19. He became interested in pigeons and started to change, becoming more isolated and eccentric.
20. Tesla died in 1942, and the FBI took his notes, which are still unclear what they were looking for.
Note: Some of the facts may be disputed or unclear, but I've tried to extract the most concrete and verifiable information from the text.