Physics of "The Current War": Edison, Westinghouse & Tesla (AC vs. DC)

[@ekklectriccurrent2094]

Excellent video! A Toastmasters-Quailty Speech! No stutters, no, ums, uhs, no "like, you know". Very refreshing Outstanding!!

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Ekklectric Current so glad you um liked it. 😁

[@jonathankranz2799]

Love, love, love your videos! One comment relevant to the DC vs. AC battle; this wasn't just a conflict of physics, but of business models. Edison's empire was predicated on selling the components necessary for generating electricity at small, local scales; he envisioned getting rich by selling thousands of equipment units. Westinghouse foresaw something else: centralized electrical generation that would be produced and distributed at large scales; he would get rich by selling the electricity. I don't really believe that Edison believed that one kind of current was more dangerous than the other, but he did understand that large-scale AC transmission would tank his business.

[@Darthvanger]

I don't really like the lines of wires everywhere (going through forests etc). And those huge power plants. The idea of having a solar roof and being off the grid is so delightful. So maybe Edison's idea could work. Like with the cars: each car is a small generator of its own energy.

[@georgeplagianos6487]

Hello Kathy thanks so much for all this information I never took physics when I went to high school in the 60s. I wasn't able to get to that point pass geometry since I have a learning disability.. I got to say learn so much from your video.. we'll have to play it a few times to learn something more with each view.. volume explaining all this history my mind wanders of how people related with each other with these new inventions it's fascinating the early years of electricity.... I can't believe Kathy you only have less than 9,000 viewers it should be mandatory for everybody to understand the history of electricit and you're perfect person to help us to absorb all fantastic history I learned a lot and your connections to all the other scientists before Edison and Tesla is fantastic.. you strung historical information systematically like beads one after the other which was easy to understand the connections starting from Feherty up till before the 1900s with the current Wars. which was why I started looking for reviews of this movie which isn't getting much media coverage what do you think ? made very interesting.. repeat myself but I like when you went back to these experiments. When you started with Feherty around 1850 creating electromagnetic waves you think coils and magnets. sorry my battery on my smartphone is going on down to 4% I'm going to lose power pretty soon but. So I'll keep viewing the other videos I'm interested in your views on Nikolai Tesla and he's other experiments besides alternating generators.. I'll keep listening and turning on other friends who are interested in this history you're fantastic thank you so much

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

You are so welcome. I am very sorry that your learning disability kept you from studying a subject you obviously love. You know lots of famous scientists have/had learning disabilities, but I don't feel like most teachers thought "outside the box" in the 60s. Anyway, if you have the time, I would recommend you watch my videos in order, not because the first ones are good (I think/hope I got better over time) but because the science starts simpler and gets more complex over time. Also, the "beads" of people might help you get some concepts as it is so hard to learn anything on your own. Cheers, Kathy ps. I just saw "The Current War" and I think I am not a good person to judge it as I know the history too well so every change they made irritated me to no end. It was beautiful to look at, though, and the acting was top notch. Also, I am glad that they focused on Edison vs. Westinghouse because I feel like Westinghouse is so often overlooked.

[@TheseusTitan]

Wow, what a great job in producing this video! It’s one of the best and very entertaining videos on the science, circumstances during the time of Tesla and Edison. Thank you!

[@ronjon7942]

I love the “Electricity” jingle. Love it. My dogs love it! When I sing it, they get a treat! Or, they get a treat and then I sing it - not sure who trained who, as I have such the lovely voice.

[@kenneth7610]

I'm an honest person I started watching your channel because your gorgeous, but I am now learning a lot from you. Thank you.

[@ronjon7942]

Ha, right? Same.

[@denisburke4083]

Just visited Edison’s home in Ft Myers, Thank You for the detailed explanation of the Current wars.

[@Chkhitoooo]

"Starring my boyfriend Benedict Cumberbatch" 😁 Quite a good movie BTW, just watched it.

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Chkhitoooo I was quite proud of that joke… My husband wasn’t as big a fan. 🤣

[@Napoleonwilson1973]

Chkhito playing the arsehole of the story, little weasel.

[@michaelcorbidge7914]

There's a Graham Norton Show clip of studio fangirls of cumberbatch and Chris Pine to dfo with star trek. The fangirls call themselves cumberbitches or pine nuts .

[@fanplant]

​@@Kathy_Loves_Physics 3y later I find out you're not available:( Not to mention we're on opposite sides of the country.

[@kindabatooni9314]

@@Kathy_Loves_Physics he’s everyone’s boyfriend 😂even many men I know.♥️

[@h2energynow]

First I enjoyed the presentation. Second the war has not ended: Examples of DC electronics include: Cell phones. The LilyPad-based D&D Dice Gauntlet. Flat-screen TVs (AC goes into the TV, which is converted to DC) Flashlights. Hybrid and electric vehicles. So it is still going on, but using the strengths of each type of current.

[@fisheye42]

Yes, DC is gaining ground, thanks to USB powered devices (especially with USB-C). Devices get more efficient, conform to USB power, and go mobile with (DC) batteries. Cars are gaining more USB power ports. And I’m starting to see house power receptacles with USB ports integrated along side the 120V-AC output.

[@SciHeartJourney]

Edison would have won his point if he had drawn attention to the hazards the lineman endured. Nearly HALF of them were KILLED on the job! 🤯 I was shocked when I learned about this high voltage DC line running though Saugus, CA. I was working nearby and this guy who worked there told me about them. They carry 500,000 volts DC power! It turns out that for very long lines that DC is more economical and has less loss due to induction.

[@AnbroBR]

I think that you have your "facts" incorrect. The POWER LOSS in a wire is obtained by multiplying the current by itself and multiplying that total by the resistance of the length of the conductor. A conductor carrying high voltage AC with a small current would have vastly LESS power loss than a conductor carrying DC (any voltage) carrying very high current. Basic Ohm's Law. Thank you.

[@okaro6595]

No, it would have been just as impossible for Edison's system to win as it would have been for the Wright brothers to fly to the moon. His system was a dead end. It would have worked to some extent if he had accepted AC transmission and used DC only for distribution. High voltage DC did not exist at Edison's times and Edison would have opposed it anyway. The solution was obvious: put the cables on the ground.

[@ElizabethT45]

This was a really helpful video! I never took physics in high school because it seemed too complicated. Of course that was 1984 when computers were still new 😏

[@hydrolito]

They had computers in the 1930's and used key punch machines to input data.

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Glad you liked the video and I am so sad/sorry that you were frightened away from Physics. It is so cool and I feel that when you study it's history you will find that it is not always as complicated and frightening as you think. - Cheers, Kathy

[@ElizabethT45]

@@hydrolito yes, but people did not have home computers to use to look up helpful videos, did they?

[@archiedentone5950]

The only glaring mistake is Tesla did not originate 60hz frequency he used 25hz Fighting between Tesla and Westinghouse over frequency was why Tesla quit working with Westinghouse

[@okaro6595]

Now you are confusing everything. Yes 25 Hz was originally used for some application but it is totally unusable for lighting. Tesla designed his motor for 60 Hz.

[@archiedentone5950]

@@okaro6595 Tesla never designed for 60 hz and that argument is why Tesla and Westinghouse stopped working together.

[@stephenirwin2761]

Great episode. I grew up knowing the basic battle between Edison and Westinghouse over AC but you just introduced me to the movie I had not known about and just went out and watched! Thanks so much!

[@TexRenner]

The GE plant in Houston, where I worked 32 years, built some DC switchboards for marine applications; shipping and offshore platforms.

[@jamesslick4790]

I will say this upfront: I am from Pittsburgh, PA The STEEL CITY, And, Carnegie and Frick were viewed as "evil bastards" in our home. However, the names of Henry Heinz AND George Westinghouse were REVERED. It was O.K., if you had an appliance that was, say... a Maytag or a Kenmore...But NOT G.E.!!! (even though G.E. had NOTHING to do with Edison at that point, LOL). It was just NOT something one DID!...It was like using "Hunt's" ketchup! (or drinking Pepsi in Atlanta!) . To my mother NO ONE in Pittsburgh EVER bought a G.E. appliance! (SOME here did, but THOSE people were disloyal..... probably Communists!😜) It was Westinghouse or something else not but not G.E.! My Mum died in 1989. I have a G.E. refrigerator....May George have mercy on my soul! I know my mum won't. LOL....

[@cdstoc]

It's amazing how often a visionary founder of a company is fired from that company by the powers that be, usually the bankers. Edison fired from Edison General Electric, Henry Ford (who once worked for Edison) from the Henry Ford Company (which then became Cadillac), and Steve Jobs from Apple Computer, just to name three. All three of them also bounced back and became successful again in new endeavors.

[@okaro6595]

If is common that the one who first starts something is unwilling to evolve. They do not recognize improvements made by others. Edison did this three times with the phonograph, electricity and movies. Wright brothers did that with airplanes. The Edison all DC system was a clear dead end. One would have needed a coal burning plant within a mile of each user. DC did have some future but it was combined with AC transmission so instead of using steam engines they used AC motors to run the dynamos but even that worked only on urban areas and was an intermediate phase.

[@pimpthelimp]

As an ex-Westinghouse employee, this history was very personal to me. I was not aware of the influence Big W had as a Titan in the current war! Thanks

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Westinghouse is so overlooked, it is criminal.

[@pimpthelimp]

@@Kathy_Loves_Physics Westinghouse was instrumental in Pittsburgh's Renaissance II transition from blue-collar to white-collar with the recruitment of 500 1982 college engineers, from all diversity. I was among them.

[@765kvline]

Great film and stuck to the known technical/economic facts within the realities of committing such a broad story to an hour and half film. A rating!

[@lucasrem1870]

The young weirdo style boyfriend, lol

[@davidmenham1782]

Thank you for your clever detective work. You have helped me to have a more sober view of Tesla after having been mislead by some other accounts of his work which contained as it now appears some partial truths.

[@victoriagranite1694]

Tesla was invertor of AC not anyone else. Check his patent. Someone, wants to take Tesla's inventions. Tesla has about 700 patents, but we only know about couple of them. Where they are?

[@raiderjohnthemadbomber8666]

Your intelligence is at the forefront. Your research is spectacular, thank you so much for sharing. It appears that Edison couldn't keep up with the times.

[@iotaje1]

Thanks for this video series, I'm only just discovering it now. Did you make an episode on Zénobe Gramme? He was a self taught Belgian inventor who improved a DC motor and is credited for his contributions to the industrial revolution in Belgium.

[@marzymarrz5172]

One of the best stories in the history of electricity!

[@afez7101]

Thank You so much your videos are very grounded (no pun) and so informative. Your passion is amazing.

[@MrHichammohsen1]

Im doing a run i started from video 1! Tomorrow will pick up! AMAZING CHANNEL! Thank you

[@UNisOUTDATED]

You really simplified the explanation - hats off !

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

So glad you liked it

[@bobconnor1210]

High voltage ac is how our power is transmitted over long distances along relatively small wires. Voltage is stepped up by transformers at the generation point and then down again where it is used. Edison’s dc system needed lots of thick wires and occasional regenerating motor/generators to carry power because of the loses to material resistance that inhibits low voltage.

[@evolv.e]

Excellent video. Loved it - subscribed!

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

evo lve so glad you liked it.

[@prem9702]

Great video, well explained thank you! earned yourself a sub :)

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Saiprem Penugonda thank you

[@shawnmulberry774]

Every time I revisit this piece of history I have to go through that Harold Brown trauma and then somehow I block it out, only to have my disgust reignited. Still it's a story worth knowing. Just imagine what they could have accomplished if they could have united their efforts. Thanks

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

I know! I didn't include many detailed because ... bleh. I was very pleased to be done with him.

[@Sunspot1225.]

If students were required to watch your videos, then the physics class would probably not be needed in high school.

[@arjunapartha]

New favorite channel.

[@silmaseen5497]

You good woman, this is great info really well packed and presented, and also is good that is on calm space and not joining in and out with zooms for the add generation

[@silmaseen5497]

It can be saved for a history!

[@silmaseen5497]

All the music, sound, radiation, magnet, electric, information, psi weapons ..is also a good topic, much information leaked from soviets about it

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Glad you liked it. I didn't zoom because I am not a film person and didn't think of it. But, now that you mention it I won't zoom in the future, don't want to make anyone feel dizzy.

[@silmaseen5497]

@@Kathy_Loves_Physics Thank You! AD.D. generation might disapprove who got stimulation free focus / attention span 3 to 7 seconds, some even as much as 20 to 40 seconds (compared to hours and days.--that was ordinary for an average person in past... ) . It is just fewer of us left.., but as we see, the videos that do not manipulate with input/output sound for us more trustworthy and pleasant, professional

[@Rabblewitz]

I thought J.P. Morgan was a bigger player in the current war than indicated here (granted, he had nothing to do with the Physics), backing Edison early on with the attitude that if you are going to run a business, make sure you have a monopoly. He also tried to ruin Westinghouse, until it became clear that AC was going to win ... and that's when he discarded Edison.

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

He would have had a bigger influence if I talked more about the financial aspect of the “war”

[@Corleone1891]

EXCELLENT video.

[@ericklopes4046]

Hey Katie, thank you for another amazing upload, finally got a notification from you (thought you seem to have uploading lots of videos this whole time)! I have the impression that streaming performance in KZbin is far superior when it's a video with lots of views. Right now, right above this text box I'm typing in, I can only see your face and the loading semicircle rounding the center of the low resolution screen. This saddens me because the quality of Internet connection here doesn't help at all either. Sorry for my bad English btw (Should have considered taking lessons). Best regards Katie, keep up with your good work!

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Erick Lopes so glad you like them. I have a new one up on how Faraday invented the idea of electromagnetic waves if you are interested 😉

[@genin69]

thank you for this. great information!

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

ZodiacProd you are welcome

[@atomicdmt8763]

love your energy....... and level of detail!

[@SilverBull30]

Great info, this will help lots of people understand more about electricity pre and post; The Current War,the movie (which you mention) coming out soon.

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Silver Bull30 Glad you liked it I saw bad reviews for the movie but I haven’t seen it yet and I. have. To. See. It.

[@SilverBull30]

@@Kathy_Loves_Physics I don't know if anybody has seen it(in the public theaters) in the US it comes out October 25th.( I'm not certain about other countries). I will be seeing the flim on opening day. I believe it cannot be bad, the history and nuance alone will make it a great movie. I personally believe because it's a Martin Scorsese film, people are setting the bar so exponentially high that it is almost impossible to reach. I think to electricity Geeks like us we're going to love it.👍 most critics are well critical lol. Thanks again!

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

@@SilverBull30 It actually came out 2 years ago so a bunch of people watched it in previews. But it was produced by Weinstein and when he got in trouble the movie got in trouble too. It is actually "produced" by Scorsese (meaning his company bought the movie from Weinstein) not directed. Still, the history is so interesting how can it not be worth a little $?

[@SilverBull30]

@@Kathy_Loves_Physics wow! I did not realize that, I remember hearing something about it coming out and then seemed disappear.(I figured it was just a delayed picture) i however do see 👀 now. I did not realize it went back 2 years. Thanks for all the info, looking foward to learning more from your channel! Have a great day 😀👍.

[@bombadeer8231]

Loving your videos Kathy 💕Great job 👍

[@susilgunaratne4267]

At the beginning Tesla & Galileo Ferraris use 2-phase motors & generators & 3-Phase system initiated by Dolivo Dobrovolsky & he perfected with his 4 wire Star/ Delta method over the Tesla's later involvement of the same.

[@vinquinn]

It's interesting to see that long distance electricity transmission is now being done with direct current.

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Everything old is new again!

[@EUC_Senior]

You are a VERY Smart woman!

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

I am used to people getting mad at me that I couldn't tell if you were being complimentary or facetious. Then I noticed this was your second nice comment... Anyway, thank you for the compliment, takes one to know one.

[@cosmicyoke]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="175">2:55</a> THEYRE indeed deceptively simple while also being mysterious, we tend to associate the B-Field with changes in voltage however in a toroidal core there is practially no external B-Fields yet we'd still get a change in voltage on a secondary winding! Thus we must investigate the aptly named A-Field, also known as the Magnetic Vector Potential by Maxwell or the Electrotonic State by Faraday.

[@theoracle6005]

As my electrical engineering professor used to say AC not DC for power transmission. Tesla and Westinghouse won this race

[@NathanKasper]

Very Good! I enjoyed this video

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Nathan Kasper so glad

[@VeggiePower303]

They never tell you to hit dislike, if you didn't like it? She said don't do anything if you didn't like it. I feel manipulated.........😩

[@MichaelJGrant]

Actually, Edison was right, AC is more hazardous to life than DC at the voltage although I doubt he ever remotely knew why. Direct or steady state current causes to heart muscle to contract for as long as it is applied, As long as the curent is only momentary,. and stops before too much tissue death occurs, the heart's natural pacemaker will restart normal rhythm. AC on the other hand will cause the heart to randomly spasm ineffectively pumping any blood until death occurs. Defibrilaators use high voltage DC. Electric chairs use high voltage AC. The sensitivity of the heart to AC depends on the frequency of the current. By some great cosmic coincidene, the human heart is most sensitive to,,,,60 hertz.

[@Joeycs369]

MichaelJGrant the biggest factor wasn’t which was more dangerous dc was just pretty shitty in comparison to ac and wouldn’t be possible to use anywhere in today’s society

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

It is amazing to me to read these prolific inventors and realize that they were often throwing stuff on the wall to see what stuck.

[@euphonesse55]

How about a movie on early radios with Benedict Cumberbatch as Howard Armstrong, and Cilian Murphy as David Sarnoff?

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Ok I’m sold

[@NormReitzel]

Can you do a narrated history of the dynamo?

[@pa4tim]

It is Werner von Siemens, not Seimens, for the rest, wonderful videos

[@samkorvie]

beautiful video

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Samuel Dela Korvie thanks

[@andyfeimsternfei8408]

Ironically a rotary exciter is an AC generator who's output is rectified to DC for the AC generators field poles.

[@longanghoai9881]

But you can explained that Why is there a power grid? Benefits and harm?

[@huangchao5164]

great！

[@jzemens4646]

This was a particularly helpful episode for me, as it helped me to out some of these major player names in better context. Thanks Kathy. But a question: If light can be bent with a magnet... can other RF nrg (or possibly even magnetism) be bent/refocused with a lens? Trying to think outside the box. :-)

[@Elite7555]

<a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="505">8:25</a> I really wonder how the electric chair got ever approved in the first place, and how it it wasn't disapproved of afterwards.

[@ashlantis4561]

incredible!!!

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

thanks

[@bullfrogpondshop3179]

Recently discovered your channel and find it very interesting, thanks! But no mention of the fact that DC doesn't travel long distances nearly as well as AC? Edison's DC power distribution system would have required a generation plant every couple blocks of a big city, whereas Tesla's AC system could have one large generation plant outside of town. That difference seems to me to have been a major factor in the widespread acceptance and use of AC over DC. As for the elephant, this is the first I've heard that Tipsy's electrocution was NOT simply the ultimate demonstration by Edison and the DC crowd with the intent of scaring the public away from their competitors' AC system. So is that story an "urban legend"?

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

I had a whole section about the transformer and how it made AC useful for traveling long distances and Westinghouse using the transformer and all of that. Did you miss the middle of my video? Yes the story of topsy the elephant is basically an urban legend. There was an elephant who was electrified and the Edison crew filmed it but they had nothing to do with it and they had nothing to do with the war of the currents. Then, in 2000 PBS made a documentary and they showed this film while they talked about Edison electrifying animals.

[@noproblem4260]

given a closer look at the circuit at <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="480">8:00</a> is so wrong it would not work, if the magnetic coil could energize by means of the sliding contact would make such a short that would blow up the Amp meter and no osculation after the first closure of the switch down the drawing

[@peters972]

Kathy, I hear they were using special high power dc lines to transport electricity somewhere recently. Please consider doing a piece on that?

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

That is very interesting to me. I think that the Japanese are particularly interested in it as they are stuck using two different frequencies. I will think about a video about it but am very busy with videos to do.

[@philkarn1761]

See also this Wikipedia article: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-voltage_direct_current

[@peters972]

@@philkarn1761 thanks Phil

[@johngellard1187]

Kathy,you did not mention poor Topsy the Elephant,whose demise can actually be viewed on KZbin,filmed of course by Edison in 1903....

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

I didn’t mention topsy because it had nothing to do with the war of the currents. It was filmed by Edison’s film crew but he had nothing to do with the decision to kill an elephant and it was a full 11 years after the war of the currents was over.

[@johngellard1187]

@@Kathy_Loves_Physics Ok Kathy.PS. the more I have read about Edison,he has gone down in my estimation.His name is on a lot of patents,but on the back of others.ie The lightbulb.Swan invention?

[@AngryHybridApe]

Very good, Kathy. I take it you studied this topic well? I've always admired George Westinghouse at every level. He was a good man all around. And Thomas Edison should not have belittled himself. He still got more credit for electricity than Westinghouse, Tesla, even Franklin (though he discovered it, but didn't do anything with it that I know of anyways.)

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Actually, Benjamin Franklin did many important things about electricity but he never discovered it. See, Electricity was known about since the ancient Greeks, and was named in 1600. Franklin did, however, discover that electricity wasn't created or destroyed but just moved (the law of conservation of charge, the first conservation law and still correct), and named it positive and negative. He also came up with an experiment to prove that sparks are the same as lightning (which he proved with a key and a kite), and came up with lightning rods and that charges are on the outside of conductors. I made a couple of videos about it.

[@AngryHybridApe]

@@Kathy_Loves_Physics Yeah. This is what they told me in elementary school. Along with George Washington and the cherry tree bit. I do remember seeing some artifacts dug up I think from ancient Egyptian days. They appeared to be batteries. The casings were made out of granite, but there were holes where the terminals would be and sections inside, like cells. But, they've yet to find any appliances for them

[@Prometheus980]

I advise you to visit Serbia, specifically Belgrade, and visit the museum of the most deserving Serb😉

[@robertgsmith5761]

So their is considerable historical debate whether AC or DC should have been used.

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

There’s no debate anymore because AC can be done over long distances in DC can’t so if you want to electrify small towns before wireless you needed AC. But at the time?? Lots of debate

[@norunnuhapatenttrademarkde347]

Nice and detailes video.

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Norunnuha Patent Trademark Design and IP Advisory glad you liked it

[@peteroconnor5537]

Enjoying the background information Kathy. Hi to your boyfriend.

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Glad you liked it. Honestly, I have never said hi to my boyfriend but if I ever do I will include you as well.

[@avipalwankhade1390]

Thanks

[@allanrydberg3901]

No they did not remove the brushes. they simpley connected them to slip rings instead of a comuniator.

[@AnbroBR]

That's COMMUTATOR...

[@fberron]

Kathy always amazing videos... One Question: Do you know why Europe has 220VAC 50 Hz Vs. us 120VAC 60 Hz?

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Glad you liked it. I think that Europe went with 50 Hz to make it an even .02 seconds a wave (Europeans like metric). According to a website I saw, they used 110 V in Europe for AC for many years (Edison used 110V-DC as his lightbulbs were designed for 100V but he added 10% for voltage loss in the lines). It was only after WW2 that the voltage was doubled to reduce the amount of copper needed for wire (higher Voltage = lower current = less heat lost in wires = thinner wires allowed). With the destruction of whole cities I guess it was a good time to do a bunch of rewiring, whereas the US contemplated doubling the voltage but thought there was too much infrastructure in place to change. Tesla felt that 60 Hz worked better for his motor and I guess (but am not sure) upped the voltage from 110 V to 120V to make it a multiple of 60.

[@fberron]

@@Kathy_Loves_Physics Thank you! :)

[@fberron]

Now I'm on your fan club. Somehow I couldn't answer your Questions on Patreon; 1) What is your first name? Fernando 2) How did you first bump into my videos? Always looking for good science videos on KZbin 3) Do you have any scientific or engineering background and, if so, what is it? Yes, I'm an electrical engineer, who loves physics Thank you for you work

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

@@fberron thank you for joining, and I wonder what is going on with Patreon messages? Grrr. Anyway, I sent you another message on Patreon, let's see if that one works! - Kathy

[@okaro6595]

In Europe Dolivo-Dobrovolsky first used 40 Hz but as lights flickered with it he switched to 50 Hz. 60 Hz comes from Tesla. With voltage it is more complex. Everyone started at 110 V as that was what carbon bulbs required. However Europe gradually shifted to 220 V. Berlin was first in 1898 but many places it took longer. In Finland for example in early 50s major cities was at 127 V / 220 V AC, rural areas were at 220 V / 380 V AC (three phase). The center of Helsinki was still at 125 / 250 V DC (three wire). Normal sockets gave the lower of the voltages. In the late 50s, early 60s it was harmonized to 220 V / 380 V. Then in 1988-95 it was raised to 230 V / 400 V to harmonize with Britain.

[@mjaga56]

Excellent video, but it's Siemens, not Seimens ;)

[@annatorio1853]

Liked your video but my brain could not keep up with the coils and the magnets and the hertz and volts. When is the sit in class? 🤗

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Sorry, I do cover a lot of stuff and I am stuck at home right now. It might make more sense if you watched some of the videos about the history. Maybe start with galvani's discovery of the first battery (although it wasn't called a battery)? kzbin.info/www/bejne/rniZiGt3aK-MfKM

[@russellbride]

Fun fact: the band took their name from their sister's sewing machine which could run on both AC and DC.

[@jamesslick4790]

"The alternating current will kill people, of course. So will gunpowder, and dynamite, and whisky, and lots of other things; but we have a system whereby the deadly electricity of the alternating current can do no harm unless a man is fool enough to swallow a whole dynamo." - George Westinghouse

[@SuperFredAZ]

I think mean Siemens

[@johnwalters6800]

I do not know if you have a video on the challenge of AC vs DC on the Niagara Falls power plant. JP Morgan and his money did dirty tricks to Westinghouse who won the contract. JP told Westinghouse that he would claim he was the inventor of AC and by the time that Westinghouse proved this was correct in court that he would be bankrupt. Westinghouse sold the rights of AC to JP. JP once again proved that money always wins. JP had GE and the rights to AC.

[@okaro6595]

With DC there would not have been any plant there. One needs to have the plant within a mile of the users.

[@scharkalvin]

No AC current motors? Not true. A DC motor that has field coils (instead of permanent magnets in the field) with a commutator will happily run on AC OR DC current. In fact, these are the most common general purpose fractional horsepower motors in use today. Only when you get into multi-horsepower motors (or synchronous motors) do you start to see AC induction type motors with starting capacitors.

[@MrLemonchang]

Tesla is engineer and magicial in same time.

[@martinkuliza]

Hi Kathy, Great video MAY I MAKE A SUGGESTION Please consider including the following background Music ACDC - Hells Bells ACDC - Night Prowler ACDC - Who made Who ACDC - Thunderstruck ACDC - Flick of the Switch and of course ACDC - High Voltage My pick would be Hells Bells

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Unfortunately I can’t use their music or my video will be removed as it is copyrighted.

[@martinkuliza]

@@Kathy_Loves_Physics LOL.. that's fucking bullshit, doesn't that suck ? i can just imagine your videos with hells bells or who made who in the background anyway mate, as an engineer, you've done a good video here and done credit where it was due, i recently had a friend tell me about this foxtel thing The current wars (as if we haven't seen enough versions of it) but to him it was his first time, and i have to say , WHAT A LOAD OF SHIT it was, i mean it was a good movie as far as a movie is concerned but it just left out so many details about edison, it painted him in the light of the humanitarian LOL, so if you've never heard the story you would view the movie as a good movie, but if you know the story it's really obvious that they left out a tonne of stuff and manipulated other things to soften the reality of it but yeah.. good work here anyway, appreciate it and respect for the ACDC picture

[@omardiaz3557]

In the final edison lose the game. Now he is the man who create the cinemas

[@criscrosxxx]

one of the men

[@osprza]

Great video, but the german guy's last name is Siemens, not Seimens...

[@evukelectricvehicles]

Nikola Tesla's role seems to be very understated in the movie - just as he was largely ignored by the media, historians and scientific establishment until Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning(not Elon Musk!) founded Tesla Motors in 2003. In the movie "The Secret of Nikola Tesla"(with Orson Welles) the Croatian AC Current emigre-evangelist Tesla plays a far more prominent role - here's that well-liked full movie: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mYaamIaogtysgck Paul G

[@swedensy]

Nice. Sad you did not mention about how his DC did not power customers over 100km abd other guys AC could get over 100km

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

I did mention that AC went farther than DC but I didn't see any contemporaneous articles mentioning 100 km (which would have been odd in the US as we use miles). Not to say that there wasn't anything mentioning that number as obviously, I cannot read everything from that time. I am sorry, however, if you felt like I was unclear about the huge advantage AC had in transmitting power longer distances.

[@23lkjdfjsdlfj]

Pedantically, DC is mathematically better than AC at transmitting power over long distances. No one disputes this and the simple reason is AC capacitance. AC can be better (cheaper, simpler) at transforming high voltage transmission lines at the endpoints. For the past decade Countries that have a "choice" only install DC transmission lines and eat the larger upfront cost of DC step up / step down voltage conversion.

[@benquinney2]

Which one kills you?

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

They both can kill you. But AC is actually more dangerous (it is also more powerful and more useful for long distances)

[@n057828]

You should of labeled this as AC/DC basics

[@goodnewsusa]

Who came here after watching #currentwarmovie ?

[@trexx32]

Leaving out Charles Stinemetz...

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

I have *got* to study up on that guy.

[@5Andysalive]

ie and ei in german are counterintuitive for english speakers. So it is spelled Siemens pronounced just like you do.

[@Waldvogel45]

ie and ei are not interchangeable. Meitner /Mietner ? Siemens Seimens ? Tut tut for a scientist. try switching + and - willy nilly .

[@axelurbanski2828]

Thx but Siemens not Seimens ... thx from Germany

[@dddfff1916]

Tesla was genius

[@PatrickPoet]

In which we learn that Kathy has a boyfriend with the unlikely name of Benedict Cumberbatch and all of us fall into despair because there's only one of her with all her brilliance! Sigh;)

[@martinkuliza]

in the 50s there was a war between Big band and Rock n Roll in the 70s there was a war between Rock n roll and ACDC............ACDC won with Hard Rock in the 80s there was a war between Heavy Metal and Glam Metal , Heavy Metal won in the 70s there was also another war called THE BROWSER WARS, on one side we had Netscape navigator on the other side Internet Explorer, after all the blood was shed and threats issued, Microsoft Internet Explorer won there was also a war on computers between Pear, Wang, Commodore, Apple, Microsoft, Apple won at least initially, then Microsoft took the crown back but at the end of the day ACDC STILL RULES FUN FACT, NIKOLA TESLA WAS SO AHEAD OF HIS TIME THAT HE USED TO LISTEN TO ACDC WHILE WORKING ON AC LOL

[@AnbroBR]

And R.E.O. Speedwagon had High Infidelity...

[@galaxysam1375]

You sooo coool

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

I’m so not but thanks for saying it

[@galaxysam1375]

@@Kathy_Loves_Physics really i know you got a Boyfriend but i wished we could be very good friends and we could talk together about all kind of scientists and herbs electricity and cook some tasty food and have fun....like people used to do before the pandemic...you awesome i send you love over the connectivity of light

[@klocugh12]

Great video! And congrats on the boyfriend 😉

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Yeah, my husband wasn’t too excited about it 🤣

[@supermikeb]

@@Kathy_Loves_Physics I can imagine.

[@n057828]

Not Westinghouse but Mr Tesla himself Westinghouse is a company

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

Westinghouse company is named after Mr. Westinghouse

[@noproblem4260]

now on will not add due congrats for short, just join the thousand you get.. going to the point: what was then the purpose of killing an elephant? deserves a video?? also at <a href="#" class="seekto" data-time="480">8:00</a> the circuit applied to the dog would give him a PULSED DC this is, the generator ( edison´s) is DC , the conctact- no contact of the oscilating reed gave the dog DC.. not DC. Some would say that had an AC component but not pure AC thecnically speaking, now I believe that DC would kill you easily than AC as it adds electrolisis in your body, not only heat like AC...

[@Kathy_Loves_Physics]

there was a circus elephant who had attacked a person and they decided to kill that elephant with electricity. Edison‘s film crew decided to film it as they felt that people at the time would pay to see a short film of a dying elephant 🤢. This was far after the war of the currents but Edison always put his name at the beginning of every film. Also, a 1999 PBS documentary showed the elephant footage while they talked about Edison killing animals in the war of the current so everyone got the wrong impression.

[@andyfeimsternfei8408]

Aren't you married? I guess Cumberbatch is your hall pass?

[@apurvmj]

I like your boyfriend

[@CAPTAINSSBN]

The entire universe runs on impulses including our heart and brain everything. Future motors will also be run impulses NOT AC or DC. The use of AC is extremely inefficient while Impulse motors if designed properly can be made to run themselves. Our atoms run on energy from the vacuums Etheric Energy flow. as does all mater the impulse motors use this same energy

[@uzioverberg8389]

Your great 👍