Tesla - A man out of time by Margaret Cheney

The book,Tesla: Man Out of Time by Margaret Cheney offers an intimate biography of the complex man who helped design and promote the world of alternating current.  He combined the qualities of a driven focused scientist with the theatricality of a magician.

His early partnership with Thomas Edison soured as Tesla and Westinghouse battled Edison over the benefits of DC vs AC current.  AC eventually won out as it allowed for more efficient transmission of electricity over long distances.

Tesla was not a traditional scientist and more of an engineer.  He did not publish papers in scientific journals but worked to gain support from companies and wealthy patrons to support his research and to patent his ideas.  He was definitely a celebrity during his time.

Tesla's friend, Mark Twain, would visit his lab to keep up to date on Tesla's latest research.  Tesla claimed that Mark Twain's writing cured his illness.  Twain claimed that one of Tesla's inventions cured one of his maladies.  Rumors persist that Twain based the main character of a Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's court on Tesla. 

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