GE and Union college continued to use his image to promote themselves so that he was commonly known to the general public up until the 1960s. Walter Hines Page, Arthur Wilson Page, The Worlds Work: A History of Our Time, Volume 8. Repository. [12] Joseph Laub (director) Phasors Steinmetz and Union (2014) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ddmM3EAzwY. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. Steinmetz tried to warn us that, We have been a wasteful nation because of our great natural wealthwe have been destroying our forests to get lumber in the most extravagant way. According to Steinmetz, Steinmetz and Edison had met each other way back in August 1893, at an electrical meeting at the worlds fair in Chicago just after Steinmetzs boss Eickemeyer sold out to GE. So, the electricity in a cloud that can hurl a thousand lightning bolts is worth just ten dollars![31] Steinmetz then decided it was time to use modern technology to recreate lightning, which he did with 200 of what were basically Leyden jars in the form of glass slabs which would produce around 120,000 volts. The trip exhausted the 58-year-old scientist, and on October 26, back in his home on Wendell Avenue, his grandson Billy brought him breakfast on a tray, only to observe Steinmetz lying motionless on his bed, a physics book by his side. The Father of Electrical Engineering. 6. Most often asked questions related to bitcoin. I am not 100% sure what motivated Edison to do this but as far as I can tell it went down like this: a few years earlier, Henry Ford who was a GIANT Edison supporter decided to make a museum dedicated to show industrial history which eventually turned into the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation. He was born on April 9, 1865 in Breslau, Germany, (modern-day Wrocaw, Poland) and was educated at the universities of Breslau and Berlin, and the Polytechnic in Zurich, Switzerland, specializing in mathematics, electrical engineering, and chemistry, and teaching mathematics at the same time. In 1893 the newly formed General Electric Company purchased Eickemeyers company, primarily for his patents, but Steinmetz was considered one of its major assets. Doctor Steinmetz served the Institute as vice-president (1896-98), manager (1892-95; 1898-1901) and as committeeman at various times; he also contributed papers frequently to Institute meetings and publications, his first, in 1892, "On the Law of Hysteresis," marking a new epoch in electrical science. Steinmetz responded with a note that simply said, Making chalk marks on generator $1, Knowing where to make mark $9,999, Total due $10,000.[36]. Proteus was as happy as hed ever been in his life. What exactly was the Wizard of Schenectady doing in Building 28? [13], Steinmetz founded America's first glider club, but none of its prototypes "could be dignified with the term 'flight'".[24][25][c]. Steinmetz thoroughly enjoyed the comparison. 5 Summary. Open today 10 AM - 5 PM. Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. Here again he made fundamental contributions. On graduating from the gymnasium with honours, he entered the University of Breslau in 1883. [32] Tamed Lightning Scientific American vol. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. Male Occupation electrical engineer An electronics genius, Charles Proteus Steinmetz founded the General Electriclaboratory and refined and standardized the study and notation of alternating current circuitry. As I said before, GE was delighted and decided to use this meeting to promote the company and worked overtime to promote the Steinmetz-Edison connection and the story of Steinmetz, which is why they photoshopped that picture of Einstein and Steinmetz so it looked like it was just the two of them. Charles Steinmetz (near center) sitting next to Edwin Houston and in front of T. Commerford Martin, See also: Papers of Charles Proteus Steinmetz. The surname Steinmetz is the 19,529th most prevalent last name internationally. [citation needed], Faced with an expiring visa, he emigrated to the United States in 1889. How can we avoid the occurrence of weld porosity? Alternate titles: Karl August Rudolf Steinmetz. In 1892, the firm merged with the General Electric Company and he was sent to Lynn, Mass. You can see how they did this in this clip from a 1976 GE promotional film. In 1901, Steinmetz was elected president of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, and in 1902, he was awarded an honorary degree from Harvard 1902. He was doing all this to actually test lightning arresters (the lightning protectors for electrical power lines) for the first time. Steinmetz, on the other hand, felt that a full liberal education not only would help with knowing the origin of terms but also because the vocation of the engineer is especially liable to make the man one-sided. He made ground-breaking discoveries in the understanding of hysteresis that enabled engineers to design better electromagnetic apparatus equipment, especially electric motors for use in industry.[1][2][a]. [26][d] He died on October 26, 1923, and was buried in Vale Cemetery in Schenectady. In just a few years, Steinmetz would prove his American friend right. Doubleday, 1929. He arrived at Ellis Island in 1888 and was nearly turned away because he was a dwarf, but an American friend whom Steinmetz was traveling with convinced immigration officials that the young German Ph.D. was a genius whose presence would someday benefit all of America. 14 months later Steinmetz and almost all the GE employees were transferred from the GE labs in New York City to 165 miles away in Schenectady. [25] This was just after the end of WW1, so the anti-German feeling was very strong, but Einstein was so famous that everyone flocked to see him and used him to promote their cause or business. Ford, whose electrical engineers couldnt solve some problems they were having with a gigantic generator, called Steinmetz in to the plant. [9] Hammond, Charles Proteus Steinmetz, 400. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. [14] Hammond, Charles Proteus Steinmetz: A Biography, 296. Later he was naturalized, and became interested in politics in Schenectady. Once Steinmetz had found the law governing hysteresis loss, engineers could calculate and minimize losses of electric power due to magnetism in their designs before starting the construction of such machines. Kessinger Publishing, 2006. His discoveries changed the way engineers thought about circuits and machines and made him the most recognized name in electricity for decades. [3] A genius in both mathematics and electronics, he did work that earned him the nicknames "Forger of Thunderbolts"[4] and "The Wizard of Schenectady". After a short stay in Zrich he immigrated to the United States in 1889, traveling by steerage. By the turn of the twentieth century, Steinmetz had started construction on a large house on Wendell Avenue, in the area where GE executives lived. Background Charles Steinmetz was born Karl August Rudolf Steinmetz on April 9, 1865, in Breslau. Gilbert King Cornell University Professor Ronald R. Kline, author of Steinmetz: Engineer and Socialist,[12] contended that other factors were more directly involved in Steinmetz's decision to leave his homeland such as being in arrears with his tuition at the university and life at home with his father, stepmother and their daughters being tension-filled. [5] Steinmetz's equation,[b][6] Steinmetz solids, Steinmetz curves, and Steinmetz equivalent circuit[7] are all named after him, as are numerous honors and scholarships, including the IEEE Charles Proteus Steinmetz Award, one of the highest technical recognitions given by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers professional society. 8-9, (June 1923), 207. 6 (March 3, 1922), 1-3. He was too lazy to eat.. He was a member of numerous scientific and educational organizations. U.S. Patent No. Advertising Notice A prime example of this phenomenon is lightning, and Steinmetz investigation of lightning phenomena resulted in his theory of traveling waves and opened the way for his development of devices to protect high-power transmission lines from lightning bolts. His book Theory and Calculation of Alternating Current Phenomena (coauthored with Ernst J. Berg in 1897) was read and understood by only a very few. He founded the Mohawk Aerial Navigation Company, Ltd. At the same time, Steinmetzs work with Union college inspired him to promote the idea that electrical engineering education should have a broad framework specifically in the classics (at this time almost all electrical engineering departments treated education as a trade where the students learned about EE only). This wasnt as much as an all-boys club as you might think as there were several women and many children that would visit regularly, including Ernst and Eskil Bergs sister Julia, Millers sister Florence, a neighbor named Mrs. Krueger who was basically the den mother of this whole mad group and Steinmetzs half-sister Clara who would often stay for long periods until the craziness of the situation became too much when she would escape to her own devices in New York.[6]. Steinmetz legally adopted Joseph Hayden as his son, becoming grandfather to the youngsters, entertaining them with fantastic stories and spectacular scientific demonstrations. [26] Einstein visits high power radio RCA News, Vol. Hayden favored the idea, but his future wife was wary of the unorthodox arrangement. Why SJF Cannot be implemented practically? America was entering a golden age of electrical engineering, and when Thomas Edison and General Electric learned what Steinmetz was doing with electric motors in Yonkers, the company bought out Eickemeyer and Osterheld in 1892, acquiring all of Steinmetzs patents as well as his services. In Greek mythology, Proteus was a cave-dwelling prophetic old man who always returned to his human formthat of a hunchback. Where was Charles P Steinmetz born and raised? GE took the opportunity to invite their top stars like Irving Langmuir, Albert Hull, Steinmetzs old friend Ernst Berg and, of course, Charles Proteus Steinmetz to the party. Once the mansion was finished, Steinmetz filled the greenhouse with orchids, ferns and cacti (he delighted in their strange shapes) and focused on the menagerie of animals he had always wanted. Within two years, Steinmetz had built three new schools and enlarged 2 more and built numerous playgrounds, set up a system of school meals, set up systems of school doctors, and created an epidemic plan (which was good timing as the pandemic of 1918 was just about to arrive). Steinmetzs lightning produced over a million horsepower for a hundred-thousandth of a second. [16] Eickemeyer's firm developed transformers for use in the transmission of electrical power among many other mechanical and electrical devices. Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). Charles Proteus Steinmetz (April 9, 1865 - October 26, 1923) was a mathematician and electrical engineer. This cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. 127 (July, 1922), 26. 6 (March 1903), 145. When a Socialist mayor took office, Steinmetz served as president of the Schenectady Board of Education and was instrumental in implementing longer school hours, school meals, school nurses, special classes for children of immigrants and the distribution of free textbooks. Thus, Steinmetz reputation was assured at the age of 27. Steinmetz also greatly advanced the understanding of lightning. But the first commercial electricity was direct current. Until that time the power losses in motors, generators, transformers, and other electrically powered machines could be known only after they were built. Soon Ernst started adding strange pets, pets that Steinmetz formed a particular attachment to and soon they had a small-sized menagerie of queer pets, including, raccoons, supposedly tame; an alligator or two, the special pets of Steinmetz; owls, squirrels, monkeys, and a pair of crows, with which Steinmetzprofessed to be able to converse with.[4] Steinmetz was particularly close to the crows, named Mary and John, and was heartbroken when a pet raccoon got free and ate them. Charles Proteus Steinmetz (April 9, 1865, - October 26, 1923) was born in Breslau, Prussia (part of Germany at the time) (now known as Wroclaw, Poland). [2][18], Steinmetz also greatly advanced the understanding of lightning. He taught at Union College from 1902. I could find two sources for this, one from a letter to the editor in 1965 stating that his father told him the story, and another from a radio show at GEs WGY from 1972 on the 50th anniversary of their first show. This method was an example of using mathematical aids for engineering the design of machinery and power lines, so that the performance of the electrical system could be predicted in advance without the necessity of going through the expensive and uncertain process of building the system first and then testing it for its efficiency. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, American Institute of Electrical Engineers (AIEE), American Institute of Electrical Engineers, International Municipal Signal Association (IMSA), "Theory of the General Alternating Current Transformer", "The Natural Period of a Transmission Line and the Frequency of Lightning Discharge Therefrom", "Speed Regulation of Prime Movers and Parallel Operation of Alternators", "The Value of the Classics in Engineering Education", "The death of energy and the second law of thermodynamics, with particular reference to the thermodynamics of the atmosphere", "Charles Proteus Steinmetz, the Wizard of Schenectady", "Charles Steinmetz: Union's Electrical Wizard", "Steinmetz, Putting it in Perspective - R, L, and C Elements and the Impedance Concept", Charles Steinmetz: Improvements to Alternating Current Motor, "Steinmetz electric car 1914 - Steinmetz, Charles", "Charles Proteus Steinmetz, Pioneer of Alternating Current", "Technology innovator to headline Steinmetz Memorial Lecture - Union College", "Dr. Charles Proteus Steinmetz memorial lecture series", "Steinmetz Symposium: Celebrating 25 years of student research", "Charles P. Steinmetz Scholarship (Union College-NY) Scholarship Library", "Steinmetz car gets prominent spot at Union College", "Steinmetz Car drives into the spotlight", "American Inventors, September 21, 1983, Smithsonian Postal Museum", "Edison, Steinmetz statues slated for park near Schenectady GE", "The Fine Line between Poetry and Mathematics", "Starling Lawrence Writes a Novel About the Early Days of G.E", "Charles Proteus Steinmetz, The Man Who Either Tamed Lightning, Created Lightning, Neither, or Both", "Charles Steinmetz: Scientist and Socialist (18651923): Including the Complete Steinmetz-Lenin Correspondence", "Book Review: Alternating Current Phenomena", Charles Proteus Steinmetz, the Wizard of Schenectady, Charles Proteus Steinmetz: Accomplishments and Life, Newspaper clippings about Charles Proteus Steinmetz, Dual-rotor permanent magnet induction motor (DRPMIM), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Charles_Proteus_Steinmetz&oldid=1132596786, Members of the Socialist Party of America, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2023, Articles with unsourced statements from April 2019, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2022, Wikipedia articles needing clarification from July 2015, Articles with German-language sources (de), Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, At Union College, as chair of electrical engineering from 1902 to 1913, First vice-president of the International Association of Municipal Electricians (IAME) {which later became the, This page was last edited on 9 January 2023, at 16:58. It is hard not to look at these old photographs, and Steinmetz loved taking photos, including trick photos, without seeing how Steinmetz was always the center of a party. [40], Steinmetz is featured in John Dos Passos' U.S.A. trilogy in one of the biographies. We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. For more than 30 years Charles Proteus Steinmetz was a leader in the electrical industry, devoting his life to research, largely: relating to mathematical foundations upon which many of the developments in electrical engineering are based; there was scarcely a detail of any branch of electrical science or mathematics with which he was not conversant, Of his achievements among the most important were his investigations in the field of magnetism and his researches into the theory of direct and alternating current and the phenomena of lighting. [8] Guy Bartlett. See, in January 1914, Steinmetz gave a talk with the title of The Future of Automobiling Belongs to the Electic as gas cars were very expensive and, unlike a horse, an electric car requires no attention.[21] Edison immediately asked Steinmetz if he could add that the electric car requires no attention if equipped with an Edison battery.[22] Steinmetz agreed and even signed the ad and Edison used this and his image to promote the Edison battery. Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students. Thus, Steinmetz reputation was assured at the age of 27 16 ] Eickemeyer 's firm developed transformers for in! Cave-Dwelling prophetic old man who always returned to his human formthat of hunchback. Produced over a million horsepower for a hundred-thousandth of a hunchback an Edison battery solve some problems were! Advanced the understanding of lightning of Schenectady doing in Building 28 ] visits... 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