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Books > Science & Mathematics > Science: general issues
This is an account of the author's investigation, on behalf of the
Canadian government, into the life and ideas of the eccentric
genius Nikola Tesla. This is a completely revised and redesigned
edition, with a new introduction by the former head of the Tesla
Museum, a new chapter and a selection of photographs of Tesla and
his work in search of the holy grail of electricity - the
transmission of power without loss. As a student in Prague in the
1870s, Tesla "saw" the electric induction motor and patented his
discovery, -the first of many inventions whose plans seem to have
come to him fully fledged. He worked for the Edison company in
Paris before emigrating to the US and battling with Thomas Edison
himself to ensure that alternating, rather than direct current,
became the standard. He sold his patent in the induction motor for
$1 million dollars to George Westinghouse, who used this system for
the Niagara Falls Power Project. Moving to Colorado Springs, Tesla
worked on resonance, building enormous oscillating towers in
experiments which still intrigue today. In later life Tesla became
a recluse, bombarding newspapers with eccentric claims, including
energy transmissions to other planets. Though he died alone and
virtually forgotten, rumours gradually grew that Tesla had made
further remarkable discoveries. In an attempt to replicate his
experiments, people still build Tesla towers and puzzle over the
possible link with low-frequency broadcasts which can supposedly
disrupt the weather and affect the human mind.
By addressing the enigma of the exceptional success of Hungarian
emigrant scientists and telling their life stories, Brilliance in
Exile combines scholarly analysis with fascinating portrayals of
uncommon personalities. Istvan and Balazs Hargittai discuss the
conditions that led to five different waves of emigration of
scientists from the early twentieth century to the present.
Although these exodes were driven by a broad variety of personal
motivations, the attraction of an open society with inclusiveness,
tolerance, and - needless to say - better circumstances for working
and living, was the chief force drawing them abroad. While
emigration from East to West is a general phenomenon, this book
explains why and how the emigration of Hungarian scientists is
distinctive. The high number of Nobel Prizes among this group is
only one indicator. Multicultural tolerance, a quickly emerging,
considerably Jewish, urban middle class, and a very effective
secondary school system were positive legacies of the
Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. Multiple generations, shaped by these
conditions, suffered from the increasingly exclusionist,
intolerant, antisemitic, and economically stagnating environment,
and chose to go elsewhere. "I would rather have roots than wings,
but if I cannot have roots, I shall use wings," explained Leo
Szilard, one of the fathers of the Atom Bomb.
Estimation of Time since Death in Australian Conditions collates
data about decomposed bodies found in the eastern states of
Australia from the years 2000 to 2010. The book takes into account
that over 70% of decomposed bodies were found within 14 days. From
standard autopsy reports, a quantitative method of assessing the
degree of decomposition in four specific body organs and the total
appearance of the body was collated into a total body score (tbs).
The mathematical models on how to estimate time since death in the
eastern states of Australia are covered in this valuable resource.
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