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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the Tesla coil?

2. Whom does Nikola Tesla invite to a celebration at the Waldorf in 1898?

3. What happens when Nikola Tesla visits an official in Washington to offer a robotic invention to the government?

4. What is the name of the lamp that Nikola Tesla invents?

5. What is Nikola Tesla's first two-way radio controlled object?

Short Essay Questions

1. How does Nikola out in Colorado keep Scherff motivated while working at the laboratory back in New York?

2. From the book's Introduction, why does Nikola Tesla maintain an intensely private life?

3. In Chapter 2, "A Gambling Man," why does Nikola Tesla feel disappointed for his mother?

4. In Chapter 3, "Immigrants of Distinction," describe the influence that Charles Bachelor has on Nikola Tesla.

5. Nikola produces the first x-ray picture in America. Why does he not commercialize this discovery?

6. What are the six fundamental principles of modern radio, and where does Nikola Tesla demonstrate them in 1893?

7. In Chapter 4, "At the Court of Mr. Edison," describe the personality differences between Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla.

8. What invention does Nikola claim to be useful to send signals to Mars, and why is this possible?

9. What contributions does Nikola believe he has made to science as a result of his magnifying oscillator experiments in Colorado Springs?

10. In Chapter 13, "Hurler of Lightning," what are some of the effects of Nikola Tesla's experiments with the magnifying oscillator in Colorado Springs?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

At dinner in the Palm Room of the Waldorf Astoria, Nikola Tesla requires eighteen napkins, polishes the crystal and silver setting, has his meal served by the maitre d'hotel, calculates the cubic contents of his meal, and then departs precisely at 10:00 p.m., all while the other diners maintain their distance and pretend not to stare at him.

Part 1) Discuss how Nikola's compulsive behaviors and expectations affect his ability to produce and bring to closure his experiments, his success over the years raising funds, and his social life.

Part 2) Which of these compulsive behaviors might have helped him, and which would hinder him?

Part 3) If Nikola were alive today, do you think he would he be more likely to better manage some of his compulsions? Why or why not?

Essay Topic 2

After the fire in Nikola's laboratory, he is almost financially destitute. Nonetheless, he makes several judgment errors. List at least five errors and select the two that most inhibit Nikola's work during that time period. Describe your reasons for your selections.

Essay Topic 3

In Chapter 7, "Radio," Nikola Tesla encounters many obstacles that prevent him from focusing on his research with radio.

Part 1) Briefly describe his main distractions and identify which distractions present the greatest obstacles to his success.

Part 2) Why does the author state that it is impossible for Nikola to accept Sir William Crook's advice to focus on one single area of research?

(see the answer keys)

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