Summary of the Article: "7 Myths About Nikola Tesla You Need to Stop Believing" This Interesting Engineering article debunks seven popular myths surrounding Nikola Tesla, portraying him as a brilliant but often overhyped inventor whose work built on earlier foundations. It stresses that innovation is collaborative and incremental, quoting Tesla himself on enabling future scientists. While celebrating his real contributions—like advancing AC power systems and inventing the Tesla coil—the piece urges readers to separate fact from exaggeration. Below is a breakdown of the myths with key debunking facts:
Myth: Tesla Invented Alternating Current (AC) Tesla refined and popularized AC in the U.S., but it predated him. Hippolyte Pixii built the first AC generator in 1832; polyphase AC was discussed by Galileo Ferraris in 1885, and the first 3-phase version appeared in 1887 by August Haselwander and C.S. Bradley. Tesla started pitching his AC system in 1886. Myth: Tesla Invented the Induction Coil Tesla used induction principles in his coil and motor designs, but the core invention wasn't his. Michael Faraday discovered electromagnetic induction in 1831, and Nicholas Callan created the first induction coil in 1836, which powered early X-ray machines and radio transmitters. Myth: Tesla Invented the Transformer Tesla improved transformers for his AC work, but they existed earlier. The Ganz company in Budapest made the first practical one in the late 1870s; Lucien Gaulard and John Dixon Gibbs demonstrated AC transmission with a transformer in 1884, and William Stanley built the modern closed-core version in 1885. Myth: Tesla's Niagara Falls Hydropower Plant Was the World's First Tesla's AC system powered the landmark 1895 Niagara Falls plant, but hydroelectricity started sooner. William Armstrong's 1878 Cragside estate in England had the first scheme (one arc lamp); Edison's Appleton, Wisconsin, station opened in 1882. Europe's first 3-phase AC hydro plant was in Frankfurt in 1891; the U.S. commercial one was in Redlands in 1893. Myth: Tesla Was a Shrinking Violet Far from reclusive his whole life, Tesla was a charismatic showman who learned promotion from Edison. He dazzled crowds with invention demos in 1890s New York, though he became more isolated later at the Hotel New Yorker. Myth: Tesla Invented the Radio Tesla patented wireless tech in 1897 and pioneered radio control (demoed in 1898), but radio's roots are broader. Alexander Popov showed a receiver in 1895; Guglielmo Marconi (Nobel winner) developed it independently from 1894–1895. Tesla's U.S. patents were overturned in Marconi's favor until 1943. Myth: Tesla Invented Radar Tesla experimented with electromagnetic waves, but radar evolved from others. Heinrich Hertz proved radio waves in 1887 (building on James Clerk Maxwell's 1860s theory); Christian Hülsmeyer demoed ship-detection tech in 1904. Key milestones include Russian systems in 1934 and Robert Watson-Watt's 1935 prototype.
The article ends by noting Tesla's genius in vision and execution, but warns against myths that overshadow collective progress.