Nikola Tesla - Free-Energy Devices

330 INVENTIONS OF NIKOLA TESLA.Instead of the platinum wire I now take an ordinary 50-voltIfi c. p. lamp. When I set the induction coil in operation thelamp filament is brought to high incandescence. It is, however,not necessary to use the insulated plate, for the lamp (7, Fig. 177)is rendered incandescent even if the plate p tbe disconnected.The secondary mayalso be connected to the primary as indicatedby the dotted line in Fig. 177, to do away more or less with theelectrostatic induction or to modify the action otherwise.Imay here call attention to a number of interesting observationswith the lamp. First, I disconnect one of the terminals ofthe lamp from the secondary When s.the induction coil plays,a glow is noted which tills the whole bulb. This isglow due toelectrostatic induction. It increases'when the bulb isgraspedwith the hand, and the capacity of the experimenter's body thusadded to the secondary circuit. The secondary, in effect, is equivalentto a metallic coating, which would be placed near the pri-FIG. 177.mary If the secondary, or its .equivalent, the coating, were placedsymmetrically to the primary, the electrostatic induction wouldbe nil under ordinary conditions, that is,when a primary returncircuit is used, as both halves would neutralize each other. Thesecondary is in fact placed symmetrically to the primary, but theaction of both halves of the latter, when only one of its ends isconnected to the induction coil, is not exactly equal ;hence electrostaticinduction takes place, and hence the glow in the bulb. Ican nearly equalize the action of both halves of the primary byconnecting the other, free end of the same to the insulated plate,as in the preceding experiment. When the plate is connected,the glow disappears. With a smaller plate it would not entirelydisappear and then it would contribute to the brightness of thefilament when the secondary is closed, by warming the air in thebulb.