http://www.teslasociety.com/teslacoil.htm
In 1891 Tesla invented the Tesla coil. This high energy transformer elevated voltages from 110V to higher voltages ranging from 1,000 to 100,000,000V! The coil discharges the current through the air. The extremely high voltage and "lightning bolts" that the coil emits are painless when they contact people as Tesla demonstrates in the picture above. The current discharged was thought to be harmless to people because the current is only superficially transferred through the skin. In contrast, this current does flow through the body, more importantly the internal organs. The human body doesn't sense AC current over 15-20 kHz, that is why a person doesn't feel any pain when subjected to the coil's electricity. Recent studies have shown that joint and muscle pain can develop shortly after being exposed and can last for a few days to a week. (2)
Colorado Springs
The current that is discharged through the air can be used to power electrical devices...wirelessly. Tesla, backed by numerous investors, constructed a laboratory in Colorado Springs near Pike's Peak to test and develop a commercial Tesla coil. The coil could be used to power cities and industry wirelessly. He constructed a gigantic 142' tall coil that was able to power light bulbs wirelessly over TWO MILES AWAY. The Tesla coil drew so much power that the first time they turned the machine on it burned out the dynamo at the local power plant and killed power to the entire town of Colorado Springs.
Wardenclyffe Tower
Armed with the successes from Colorado Springs, Tesla and his investors started construction on an even larger Tesla coil that would have the ability to send electricity all over the world. Essentially turning the world into one large dynamo. This wireless power would power cruise ships, war ships, industry and homes all over the world. The coil also had the ability to transmit radio broadcasts over long distance. (Before Marconi)
During construction, Tesla, a man who by all accounts was very abrasive, came into a dispute with his investors about final rights of the use of the machine. One investor, J.P. Morgan killed the project with a famous statement "Where can I put the meter?". This was devastating to Tesla, he took it as a huge public embarrassment. The tower was dismantled and the scrap was used to fund the war effort.
http://www.hbci.com/~wenonah/new/tesla.htm
Tesla's unfinished Wardenclyffe Tower.
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