News Notes

An Unexpected Honor

While attending Ed Wingate's Rochester Area Tesla Coil Builder's Teslathon, I was presented with a plaque by Ed and his (mysterious) committee. The plaque displays a TCBA decal below which is a neatly engraved plate: “Presented to Harry Goldman in recognition of fifteen years service to the Tesla Coil building community with the Tesla Coil Builders Association newsletter - 1982-1996 - from a group of grateful coilers.” The presentation was a complete surprise and one that was appreciated by Ruth and myself. Thanks to Ed and the RATCB committee for making the Teslathon such a wonderful gathering. Incidentally, this year's event was a huge success (see report elsewhere in this issue). I regret that I have not yet attended a TCBOR Teslathon in Richmond but from the report (also in this issue), it was another topnotch electrifying bash by Rich Hull and his group of experimenters.

Unscheduled Convention #?

It is not uncommon to have one or more Tesla coilers show up at TCBA headquarters. This last September, two Tesla coil builders from the west coast - namely Bill Wysock and Ed Aronson - stopped by on their way to the Antique Wireless Association Conference in Rochester, NY. Ruth and Ed's mother, Rose, set up a nice cookout spread of burgers, hot dogs, salads, etc. There was much talk of Tesla coil building including Bill's plans for upgrading his magnifier. Videos of Bill's magnifier revealed discharges of 40 to 50 feet. The real fun of the afternoon occurred when Ed and Bill were taking zaps from various spark gap antique equipment. Just goes to show that even a 4-6" discharge can tickle an experienced coiler.

Another Book on Niagara Falls?

It seems that a new book on Niagara Falls appears with each issue of the newsletter. This time, the book is written by Daniel Dumych. Dumych is a history specialist at the Niagara Falls Public Library and a frequent lecturer on the history of that area's industrial development. Images of America - Niagara Falls is a pictorial history of the falls area including the development of hydroelectric power. Among the many photos is one of Nikola Tesla as well as many of the polyphase generators based upon his patents. The paperback is available from Arcadia Publishers, One Washington Center, Dover, NH 03820. The book is priced at $16.95 plus $3.25 for shipping. Make checks payable to the Chalford Publishing Corporation.

'Learn How to Die'

“A man is like a cork which is carried by the waves of the cosmos as well as the cork is carried by the waves of the sea” said Nikola Tesla. This quote introduces the third monograph on “The Creative Route of the Inventor” by Professor Momcil Radic of Slovenia. Professor Radic divides readers into two categories: “readers” and “seekers.” Readers, he says, do not seek anything. They are namely people who read without any deep thoughts and are contented with the fact of life as it is. On the other hand, he looks upon seekers as searching for a higher degree of knowledge similar to that of great thinkers from Pitagoras to Tesla. Although Professor Radic's books are written in the Slovene language, they are also obtainable in English translation. For more information, write to Professor Radic at Askerceva 19, 2341 Ruse, Republic of Slovenia.

Michael ‘Mad-Man’ Marcum

I woke up at 1:30 A.M., heard the rain striking the aluminum flashing on the roof, and then rolled over with the intention of falling back to sleep. Unfortunately, the body did not respond to the desire. I tossed and turned for over an hour before giving up. That's when I reached for the portable battery operated radio. Upon slipping the head phones over my ears, I began to hear one of the most amazing conversations between a talk show host and a person called Michael “Mad-Man” Marcum.

It seems that Michael Marcum is one extraordinary experimenter. According to the program to which I was listening, Marcum was preparing a “Back-to-the-Future” experiment. He has wound three transformers, each weighing 1000 pounds, that will produce a total of three million volts. The transformers will power a ring of electromagnets forming a large circle. Michael plans to walk through the circle of magnets. Just in case any of you are laughing, Michael carried out an experiment with a prototype device. When he threw an object through the circle, it disappeared. Did the Philadelphia Experiment really happen?