Nikola Tesla - in his own words

Nikola Tesla's window view in Manhattan, a photo I took from within his room in the Hotel New Yorker, where he lived.

Tesla was neither hallucinating, mad, alone, poor, religious or a nationalist. Ever since he died on this day 81 years ago, nationalist from Balkans have fought over, claiming his to be their own. If anything, he was an American.

To understand one of the world greatest geniuses, I recommend his own book (https://www.amazon.com/My-Inventions-Autobiography-Nikola-Tesla/dp/1684222060), not someone speaking on his behalf. Here are some quotes, relevant today as 134 years ago:

"I was intended from my very birth for the clerical profession and this thought constantly opprest me.

I was swayed by superstitious belief and lived in constant dread of the spirit of evil, of ghosts and ogres and other unholy monsters of the dark. Then, all at once, there came a tremendous change which altered the course of my whole existence. Of all things I liked books the best.

But my hardest trial came on Sunday when I had to dress up and attend the service. There I meet with an accident, the mere thought of which made my blood curdle like sour milk for years afterwards. It was my second adventure in a church.

During all those years my parents never wavered in their resolve to make me embrace the clergy, the mere thought of which filled me with dread.

When I went abroad in 1889 - five years having elapsed since my arrival here - I became convinced that it was more than one hundred years AHEAD of Europe and nothing has happened to this day to change my opinion.

in April, 1887, the Tesla Electric Company was organized, providing a laboratory and facilities. The motors I built there were exactly as I had imagined them. I

Judging from my past experience, as much as 100,000,000 volts are perfectly practicable.

This invention was one of a number comprised in my “World-System” of wireless transmission which I undertook to commercialize on my return to New York in 1900.

The ‘World-System’ has resulted from a combination of several original discoveries made by the inventor in the course of long continued research and experimentation. It makes possible not only the instantaneous and precise wireless transmission of any kind of signals, messages or characters, to all parts of the world, but also the inter-connection of the existing telegraph, telephone, and other signal stations without any change in their present equipment. By its means, for instance, a telephone subscriber here may call up and talk to any other subscriber on the Globe. An inexpensive receiver, not bigger than a watch, will enable him to listen anywhere, on land or sea, to a speech delivered or music played in some other place, however distant.

The first ‘World-System’ power plant can be put in operation in nine months.

(1) The inter-connection of the existing telegraph exchanges or offices all over the world; (2) The establishment of a secret and non-interferable government telegraph service; (3) The inter-connection of all the present telephone exchanges or offices on the Globe; (4) The universal distribution of general news, by telegraph or telephone, in connection with the Press; (5) The establishment of such a ‘World-System’ of intelligence transmission for exclusive private use; (6) The inter-connection and operation of all stock tickers of the world; (7) The establishment of a ‘World-System’ of musical distribution, etc.; (8) The universal registration of time by cheap clocks indicating the hour with astronomical precision and requiring no attention whatever; (9) The world transmission of typed or handwritten characters, letters, checks, etc.; (10) The establishment of a universal marine service enabling the navigators of all ships to steer perfectly without compass, to determine the exact location, hour and speed, to prevent collisions and disasters, etc.; (11) The inauguration of a system of world-printing on land and sea; (12) The world reproduction of photographic pictures and all kinds of drawings or records.

My project was retarded by laws of nature. The world was not prepared for it. It was too far ahead of time. But the same laws will prevail in the end and make it a triumphal success.

Peace can only come as a natural consequence of universal enlightenment and merging of races, and we are still far from this blissful realization.

I have never had the faintest reason since to change my views on psychical and spiritual phenomena, for which there is absolutely no foundation. The belief in these is the natural outgrowth of intellectual development.

It is essential to the peaceful existence of humanity as a whole that one common conception should prevail.