The Search For The Tesla Files - Page 2 - UK Vintage Radio Repair and Restoration Discussion Forum

Radio Wrangler · 5th May 2022, 9:25 pm

There's no way of knowing whether someone or yourself has invented "alien technology" unless you know what the aliens have in the first place. You've just had a new idea, and lots of little sub-ideas are dancing around your head.

What it can be used for?
Has it already been thought of?
Is there some fatal flaw you've not spotted?
What are you going to do with it?
What do I do to avoid forgetting it?

I've been on the receiving end of a few lightning bolts out of the blue/void, and the delight at coming up with something is matched by the confusion of what to do with it. One of them turned into roughly a third of a billion dollars of sales for my employer. Another wound up as US Pat 6509800 and has a who's who of firms who have cited it, so it moved on the state of the art a bit. A few wound up in my own amateur radio and hifi gear, but the rest vanished without trace. My cut of those sales was precisely zero, just the salary and no pay rises for the remaining 5 years before they made all the hardware folk redundant. That's the way it goes. I got to keep the feeling of achievement, though.

No perpetual motion machines, no free energy, no massive towers to light up the sky.

Tesla had some technical abilities, but he was certainly a showman. To get ideas over, we need showmen. I liked Eric Laithwaite, Magnus Pike, and Heinz Wolff, but they were maybe a bit too mild to grab the public's attention. I think Feynman's already been mentioned, he sounded like fun and his autobiog (2 volumes) is wonderful.

These moments of inspiration or something like that ar often when you abruptly notice similarities in two different things, sometimes two different fields. One of them I remember clearly where I was and what I was doing at the time... On holiday, on a horse at full gallop on a track over Exmoor, near the Devil's Punchbowl. I didn't come off. I got back to the apartment in Exford and went looking for a lot of paper. All to be found nearby was artist's cartridge paper pads... wow, the cost! But I got the essence down and worked through enough to see that it was viable. Lots of people have ideas out of nowhere, it's what happens afterwards that's variable.

One of the strongest feelings is the disbelief that no-one else had already thought of it.

On the whole, I wouldn't blame the aliens if it turned out they were avoiding planet Earth.

David

The Philpott · 5th May 2022, 9:38 pm

It is alleged in one of these documentaries that Tesla had explained that ideas and innovations presented themselves to him as a sort of 3 dimensional working model, where he could analyse and develop things to an unusual degree in his own mind before reaching for tools, let alone pen and paper.
Genius being the sometime bedfellow of insanity it may be significant that Tesla, Crosse, Turing and the like were by nature unstable..in Tesla's case this cannot have been helped by the AC versus DC rivalry and the dirty tricks generated by such.

I think that ineptitude and maladministration conceal far more interesting documents than profiteering or conspiracy ever could. The amount of forgotten paperwork collecting dust in the US alone must be biblical....rivalled only by that which has already been destroyed.

Dave

Uncle Bulgaria · 5th May 2022, 11:19 pm

If only there was more predisposition towards mutual aid rather than competition then these ideas might be pushed forwards more, rather than the backbiting and horrible stories alluded to with suicide and bankruptcy.

One inventor who actually seems decent was Alexander Graham Bell, spending most of his time and money on education techniques, inventions and support for the deaf. He was also ahead of his time with the Photophone.

I visited the Tesla museum in Belgrade a couple of times about ten years ago and enjoyed it. Tours in English, too.

5th May 2022, 9:25 pm	#21
Radio Wrangler Moderator Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Fife, Scotland, UK. Posts: 22,876	Re: The Search For The Tesla Files There's no way of knowing whether someone or yourself has invented "alien technology" unless you know what the aliens have in the first place. You've just had a new idea, and lots of little sub-ideas are dancing around your head. What it can be used for? Has it already been thought of? Is there some fatal flaw you've not spotted? What are you going to do with it? What do I do to avoid forgetting it? I've been on the receiving end of a few lightning bolts out of the blue/void, and the delight at coming up with something is matched by the confusion of what to do with it. One of them turned into roughly a third of a billion dollars of sales for my employer. Another wound up as US Pat 6509800 and has a who's who of firms who have cited it, so it moved on the state of the art a bit. A few wound up in my own amateur radio and hifi gear, but the rest vanished without trace. My cut of those sales was precisely zero, just the salary and no pay rises for the remaining 5 years before they made all the hardware folk redundant. That's the way it goes. I got to keep the feeling of achievement, though. No perpetual motion machines, no free energy, no massive towers to light up the sky. Tesla had some technical abilities, but he was certainly a showman. To get ideas over, we need showmen. I liked Eric Laithwaite, Magnus Pike, and Heinz Wolff, but they were maybe a bit too mild to grab the public's attention. I think Feynman's already been mentioned, he sounded like fun and his autobiog (2 volumes) is wonderful. These moments of inspiration or something like that ar often when you abruptly notice similarities in two different things, sometimes two different fields. One of them I remember clearly where I was and what I was doing at the time... On holiday, on a horse at full gallop on a track over Exmoor, near the Devil's Punchbowl. I didn't come off. I got back to the apartment in Exford and went looking for a lot of paper. All to be found nearby was artist's cartridge paper pads... wow, the cost! But I got the essence down and worked through enough to see that it was viable. Lots of people have ideas out of nowhere, it's what happens afterwards that's variable. One of the strongest feelings is the disbelief that no-one else had already thought of it. On the whole, I wouldn't blame the aliens if it turned out they were avoiding planet Earth. David __________________ Can't afford the volcanic island yet, but the plans for my monorail and the goons' uniforms are done

5th May 2022, 9:38 pm	#22
The Philpott Dekatron Join Date: Aug 2016 Location: Colchester, Essex, UK. Posts: 4,107	Re: The Search For The Tesla Files It is alleged in one of these documentaries that Tesla had explained that ideas and innovations presented themselves to him as a sort of 3 dimensional working model, where he could analyse and develop things to an unusual degree in his own mind before reaching for tools, let alone pen and paper. Genius being the sometime bedfellow of insanity it may be significant that Tesla, Crosse, Turing and the like were by nature unstable..in Tesla's case this cannot have been helped by the AC versus DC rivalry and the dirty tricks generated by such. I think that ineptitude and maladministration conceal far more interesting documents than profiteering or conspiracy ever could. The amount of forgotten paperwork collecting dust in the US alone must be biblical....rivalled only by that which has already been destroyed. Dave

5th May 2022, 11:19 pm	#23
Uncle Bulgaria Nonode Join Date: May 2016 Location: Cornwall, UK. Posts: 2,335	Re: The Search For The Tesla Files If only there was more predisposition towards mutual aid rather than competition then these ideas might be pushed forwards more, rather than the backbiting and horrible stories alluded to with suicide and bankruptcy. One inventor who actually seems decent was Alexander Graham Bell, spending most of his time and money on education techniques, inventions and support for the deaf. He was also ahead of his time with the Photophone. I visited the Tesla museum in Belgrade a couple of times about ten years ago and enjoyed it. Tours in English, too.