Part one of the Tesla Presents series, this book contains the transcript of an extended pre-hearing interview with Nikola Tesla in which he chronicals his efforts directed towards the development of an earth-based system for wireless telecommunications. An Appendex section includes the description of a physical plant built for this purpose in 1901 as reported in foreclosure appeal proceedings. 103 photos and line-art illustrations, indexed.

It was in this interesting border region, and from among these valiant Eastern folk, that Nikola Tesla was born in the year 1857, and the fact that he, today, finds himself in America and one of our foremost electricians, is striking evidence of the extraordinary attractiveness alike of electrical pursuits and of the country where electricity enjoys its widest application. Mr. Tesla's native place was Smiljan, Lika, where his father was an eloquent clergyman of the Greek Church, in which, by the way, his family is still prominently represented. His mother enjoyed great fame throughout the countryside for her skill and originality in needlework, and doubtless transmitted her ingenuity to Nikola; though it naturally took another and more masculine direction. The boy was early put to his books, and upon his father's removal to Gospic he spent four years in the public school, and later, three years in the Real School, as it is called. His escapades were such as most quick witted boys go through, although he varied the programme on one occasion by getting imprisoned in a remote mountain chapel rarely visited for service; and on another occasion by falling headlong into a huge kettle of boiling milk, just drawn from the paternal herds. A third curious episode was that connected with his efforts to fly when, attempting to navigate the air with the aid of an old umbrella, he had, as might be expected, a very bad fall, and was laid up for six weeks..

Nikola Tesla is best known for his contributions to the design of the modern alternating current (AC) electricity supply system. His alternating current (AC) induction motor and related polyphase AC patents became the cornerstone of the polyphase system. This collection provides a remarkable insight into the very beginning of electric engineering. Table of Contents: Experiments with Alternate Currents of High Potential and High Frequency Experiments with Alternate Currents of Very High Frequency and Their Application to Methods of Artificial Illumination (Lecture) Experiments with Alternate Currents of Very High Frequency and Their Application to Methods of Artificial Illumination (Article) My Inventions – Autobiography of Nikola Tesla

On Light and Other High Frequency Phenomena is a lecture by Nikola Tesla. He presents his attempts to develop a wireless lighting system based on near-field inductive and capacitive coupling.