Paradigm Lost: Nikola Tesla's True Wireless Page 7

knowledge of what is humane and progressive and acceptable. For example, to condemn Thomas Jefferson for writing in the Declaration of Independence “All men are created equal” (where are the women?) would be to engage in Whig history. In the sciences, Whig history has a similar meaning: it would be to criticize a scientist or inventor of the past for failing to use concepts that we now take for granted.¹⁵

From our present perspective, Tesla’s not using a wave model to explain radio seems bizarre, but given what was known in 1919, are we being unfair and leaving ourselves open to the accusation of Whiggishness? An example of Whig history of science would be to condemn Ptolemy for his earth centered view of astronomy. Given the tools at his disposal, his mistake is understandable.

And to disparage Maxwell for his frequent use of the term ether — when we know that the concept is not valid — would be Whig history. I will seek to explain in what follows that I have not fallen into the trap of Whig history in discussing Tesla.

Influence of Mountains or Obstacles

Tesla seeks to disprove Hertzian wave theory as a means of communication with several examples. Consider his Fig. 17, reproduced here as Fig. 4. Tesla claims that “unless the receiver is within the electrostatic influence of the mountain range” — in what we would now call “the near field of the antenna” — the signals at the receiver “are not appreciably weakened by the presence of the latter because the signal passes under it [italics added]