W. Bernard Carlson, University of Virginia
Rutgers University
Time: 4:30pm
Location: Teleconference Lecture Hall, Alexander Library, Rutgers University, New Brunswick
Plenty of biographies glamorize Tesla and his eccentricities, but until now none have carefully examined what, how, and why he invented. In his groundbreaking book, W. Bernard Carlson demystifies the legendary inventor, placing him within the cultural and technological context of his time, and focusing on his inventions themselves as well as the creation and maintenance of his celebrity. Drawing on original documents from Tesla's private and public life, Carlson shows how he was an "idealist" inventor who sought the perfect experimental realization of a great idea or principle, and who skillfully sold his inventions to the public through mythmaking and illusion.