Starting in the late 1880s, Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla were embroiled in a battle now known as the

War of the Currents

Starting in the late 1880s, Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla were embroiled in a battle now known as the

War
of the
Currents

The Chicago World’s Fair also known as the World’s Columbian Exposition
took place in 1893 and witnessed

The height of the Current War

Edison’s enduring legacy isn’t a specific patent or technology, but his invention factories, which divided the innovation process into small tasks that were carried out by legions of workers, he invents modern innovation as we know it.

Edison’s enduring legacy isn’t a specific patent or technology, but his invention factories, which divided the innovation process into small tasks that were carried out by legions of workers, he invents modern innovation as we know it.

Edison developed direct current — current that runs continually in a single direction, like in a battery or a fuel cell. During the early years of electricity, direct current (shorthanded as DC) was the standard in the U.S.

Tesla had an eidetic memory, which meant he could very precisely recall images and objects. This enabled him to accurately visualize intricate 3D objects, and as a result, he could build working prototypes using few preliminary drawings.

Tesla had an eidetic memory, which meant he could very precisely recall images and objects. This enabled him to accurately visualize intricate 3D objects, and as a result, he could build working prototypes using few preliminary drawings.

But there was one problem. Direct current is not easily converted to higher or lower voltages.
Tesla believed that alternating current (or AC) was the solution to this problem. Alternating current reverses direction a certain number of times per second — 60 in the U.S. — and can be converted to different voltages relatively easily using a transformer.
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Edison, not wanting to lose the royalties he was earning from his direct current patents, began a campaign to discredit alternating current. He spread misinformation going so far as to publicly electrocute stray animals using alternating current to prove his point.
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General Electric bid to electrify the fair using Edison’s direct current for $554,000, but lost to George Westinghouse, who said he could power the fair for only $399,000 using Tesla’s alternating current
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Same year, the Niagara Falls Power Company decided to award Westinghouse who had licensed Tesla’s polyphase AC induction motor patent. Although some doubted but Tesla was convinced it could power not only Buffalo, but also the entire Eastern US.

On Nov. 16, 1896, Buffalo was lit up by the alternating current from Niagara Falls. By this time General Electric had decided to jump on the alternating current train, too.
It would appear that alternating current had all but obliterated direct current, but in recent years direct current has seen a bit of a renaissance.

On Nov. 16, 1896, Buffalo was lit up by the alternating current from Niagara Falls. By this time General Electric had decided to jump on the alternating current train, too.
It would appear that alternating current had all but obliterated direct current, but in recent years direct current has seen a bit of a renaissance.

Today our electricity is still predominantly powered by alternating current, but computers, LEDs, solar cells and electric vehicles all run on DC power. And methods are now available for converting direct current to higher and lower voltages. Since direct current is more stable, companies are finding ways of using high voltage direct current (HVDC) to transport electricity long distances with less electricity loss.

Today our electricity is still predominantly powered by alternating current, but computers, LEDs, solar cells and electric vehicles all run on DC power. And methods are now available for converting direct current to higher and lower voltages. Since direct current is more stable, companies are finding ways of using high voltage direct current (HVDC) to transport electricity long distances with less electricity loss.

So it appears the War of the Currents may not be over yet. But instead of continuing in a heated AC vs. DC battle,
it looks like the two currents will end up working parallel to each other in a sort of hybrid armistice.

 

And none of that would be possible without the genius of both

Tesla and Edison