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The Wizard of Menlo Park and the Master of Lighting Essay

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Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla were two of the most influential minds of the 1800s. Edison, the Wizard of Menlo Park, worked hard his whole life to achieve great feats in science. Tesla, the Master of Lightning, had a brilliant mind and contributed to an electronic growth that changed American history. Thomas Edison is such a familiar name, but Tesla on the other hand is more obscure. Edison is widely known by the American public, but his intellectual equal and adversary is often forgotten. Edison and Tesla were once friends and worked on many projects together, but an argument over a bet changed their friendship and the world forever (D’Alto). Both men challenged each other throughout their lives, and their differences in inventions, …show more content…

Producing amazing inventions at a fast pace made Edison a very financially successful man. “As he went from project to project and interest to interest, he made and lost a fortune many times over” (“Thomas Alva Edison”). Edison had good luck with money. His inventions attracted investors, who were more than willing to invest portions of their fortunes. The massive amount of money he made didn’t seem to affect his way of thinking at all. Edison was imaginative and thought of money as little more than a way to get things done and accomplish his plans (Mone). The inventions, productivity, and wealth all amount to Edison’s fame. His fame, unlike his wealth, did go to his head, and he tried to convince himself that he had not changed, but he yearned for acknowledgement in the slightest advancement towards his next invention (Stross). Even though Edison became somewhat egotistic, he was a very remarkable man. Edison received many awards and medals during his life and even after his death. Edison is remembered as history’s greatest inventor, but should he be? Nikola Tesla is hidden in the shadows, but if he were brought into the light, would Edison become the forgotten one? Nikola Tesla’s inventions were very simply designed, but the concepts for their workings were complicated and hard for Americans to accept from a foreigner. Tesla was not a man

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