The electric rise and fall of Nikola Tesla
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0:01 - 0:06As a magician, I'm always interested in performances that incorporate elements of illusion.
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0:06 - 0:12And one of the most remarkable was the tanagra theater, which was popular in the
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0:12 - 0:14early part of the 20th century.
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0:14 - 0:16It used mirrors
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0:16 - 0:19to create the illusion of tiny people
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0:19 - 0:23performing on a miniature stage. Now, I won't use mirrors,
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0:23 - 0:28but this is my digital tribute to the tanagra theater.
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0:28 - 0:34So let the story begin.
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0:34 - 0:39On a dark and stormy night -- really! --
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0:39 - 0:43it was the 10th of July, 1856.
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0:43 - 0:45Lightning lit the sky,
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0:45 - 0:47and a baby was born.
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0:47 - 0:50His name was Nikola,
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0:50 - 0:52Nikola Tesla.
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0:52 - 0:55Now the baby grew into a very smart guy.
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0:55 - 0:57Let me show you.
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0:57 - 1:05Tesla, what is 236 multiplied by 501?
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1:05 - 1:09Nikola Tesla: The result is 118,236.
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1:09 - 1:14Marco Tempest: Now Tesla's brain worked in the most extraordinary way.
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1:14 - 1:16When a word was mentioned,
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1:16 - 1:17an image of it
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1:17 - 1:20instantly appeared in his mind.
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1:20 - 1:26Tree. Chair. Girl.
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1:26 - 1:29They were hallucinations, which vanished
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1:29 - 1:31the moment he touched them.
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1:31 - 1:34Probably a form of synesthesia.
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1:34 - 1:36But it was something
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1:36 - 1:39he later turned to his advantage.
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1:39 - 1:43Where other scientists would play in their laboratory,
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1:43 - 1:48Tesla created his inventions in his mind.
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1:48 - 1:54NT: To my delight, I discovered I could visualize my inventions with the greatest facility.
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1:54 - 1:58MT: And when they worked in the vivid playground of his imagination,
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1:58 - 2:01he would build them in his workshop.
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2:01 - 2:04NT: I needed no models, drawings or experiments.
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2:04 - 2:08I could picture them as real in my mind,
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2:08 - 2:12and there I run it, test it and improve it.
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2:12 - 2:15Only then do I construct it.
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2:15 - 2:16MT: His great idea
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2:16 - 2:18was alternating current.
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2:18 - 2:20But how could he convince the public that
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2:20 - 2:25the millions of volts required to make it work were safe?
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2:25 - 2:27To sell his idea,
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2:27 - 2:30he became a showman.
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2:30 - 2:35Tesla: We are at the dawn of a new age,
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2:35 - 2:37the age of electricity.
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2:37 - 2:41I have been able, through careful invention, to
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2:41 - 2:43transmit, with the mere flick of a switch,
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2:43 - 2:46electricity across the ether.
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2:46 - 2:49It is the magic of science.
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2:49 - 2:52(Applause)
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2:52 - 2:57Tesla has over 700 patents to his name:
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2:57 - 3:03radio, wireless telegraphy,
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3:03 - 3:10remote control, robotics.
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3:10 - 3:16He even photographed the bones of the human body.
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3:16 - 3:20But the high point was the realization of a childhood dream:
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3:20 - 3:26harnessing the raging powers of Niagara Falls,
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3:26 - 3:30and bringing light to the city.
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3:30 - 3:37But Tesla's success didn't last.
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3:37 - 3:40NT: I had bigger ideas.
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3:40 - 3:43Illuminating the city was only the beginning.
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3:43 - 3:48A world telegraphy center -- imagine news,
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3:48 - 3:52messages, sounds, images delivered to
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3:52 - 3:53any point in the world
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3:53 - 3:57instantly and wirelessly.
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3:57 - 4:02MT: It's a great idea; it was a huge project. Expensive, too.
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4:02 - 4:04NT: They wouldn't give me the money.
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4:04 - 4:08MT: Well, maybe you shouldn't have told them it could be used to contact other planets.
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4:08 - 4:12NT: Yes, that was a big mistake.
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4:12 - 4:16MT: Tesla's career as an inventor never recovered.
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4:16 - 4:18He became a recluse.
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4:18 - 4:20Dodged by death,
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4:20 - 4:22he spent much of his time
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4:22 - 4:24in his suite at the Waldorf-Astoria.
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4:24 - 4:30NT: Everything I did, I did for mankind,
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4:30 - 4:37for a world where there would be no humiliation of the poor by the violence of the rich,
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4:37 - 4:41where products of intellect, science and art
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4:41 - 4:47will serve society for the betterment and beautification of life.
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4:47 - 4:52MT: Nikola Tesla died on the 7th of
January, 1943. -
4:52 - 4:55His final resting place
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4:55 - 4:58is a golden globe that contains his ashes
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4:58 - 5:01at the Nikola Tesla Museum in Belgrade.
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5:01 - 5:05His legacy is with us still.
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5:05 - 5:09Tesla became the man who lit the world,
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5:09 - 5:12but this was only the beginning.
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5:12 - 5:15Tesla's insight was profound.
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5:15 - 5:20NT: Tell me, what will man do when the forests disappear,
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5:20 - 5:23and the coal deposits are exhausted?
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5:23 - 5:26MT: Tesla thought he had the answer.
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5:26 - 5:33We are still asking the question.
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5:33 - 5:35Thank you.
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5:35 - 5:40(Applause)
- Title:
- The electric rise and fall of Nikola Tesla
- Speaker:
- Marco Tempest
- Description:
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Combining projection mapping and a pop-up book, Marco Tempest tells the visually arresting story of Nikola Tesla -- called “the greatest geek who ever lived” -- from his triumphant invention of alternating current to his penniless last days.
- Video Language:
- English
- Team:
- closed TED
- Project:
- TEDTalks
- Duration:
- 06:05
Thu-Huong Ha edited English subtitles for The electric rise and fall of Nikola Tesla | ||
Thu-Huong Ha edited English subtitles for The electric rise and fall of Nikola Tesla | ||
Thu-Huong Ha edited English subtitles for The electric rise and fall of Nikola Tesla | ||
Jenny Zurawell approved English subtitles for The electric rise and fall of Nikola Tesla | ||
Jenny Zurawell edited English subtitles for The electric rise and fall of Nikola Tesla | ||
Jenny Zurawell edited English subtitles for The electric rise and fall of Nikola Tesla | ||
Jenny Zurawell accepted English subtitles for The electric rise and fall of Nikola Tesla | ||
Jenny Zurawell edited English subtitles for The electric rise and fall of Nikola Tesla |