From 65438 to 1980s, the invention of electric light and the application of electrical equipment in some big cities brought great business opportunities to American enterprises. In this fierce commercial competition, Edison, as the inventor of electric light, was undoubtedly the first to win. 1882, he set up several square miles of power lines in the bustling financial district of new york. At the same time, his competitor Westinghouse is not to be outdone. Elsewhere in the city, it is also desperately setting up power lines, building power plants and selling energy and light bulbs. The competition between the two companies has entered a white-hot level from the beginning. Both Edison and Westinghouse Electric know that this struggle is not only related to the profits of millions of dollars, but also to who will be the boss of the electrical appliance market in the future.
To be fair, Edison is obviously at a disadvantage in the competition in the technical field. Although he was the inventor of electric light, he used low-energy direct current, while his opponent George Westinghouse used high-energy alternating current. Compared with the former, the latter can transmit electric energy from the generator to a farther place with less copper wire. Obviously, this cost advantage has shaken Edison's leading position. By 1889, alternating current completely overwhelmed direct current, and even Edison's own employees required alternating current. Edison was very stubborn, unwilling to give up his invention and refused the reasonable demands of employees.
Because alternating current is superior to direct current in technology and cost, Westinghouse has always been ahead in commercial competition. Edison was very angry about it. He said angrily, "That guy is crazy. He is flying a kite, not knowing that he will eventually fall into a stinking puddle. " In order to hit the opponent, Westinghouse really "fell into a stinking puddle". Edison didn't think of improving technology and making innovations, but using technology to invent and kill people. To this end, he thought of a loss, and prepared for the safety of electricity to let the other party fall into the trap set by himself.
At that time, although electricity was the most popular new energy, there were some loopholes in the safe use of electricity due to insufficient publicity and popularization of new technologies, and dozens of electric shock accidents occurred. These accidents have caused many Americans psychological panic, and even talked about the color change of "electricity", afraid to connect the electricity to their own homes for use. Edison thought to himself that if a fact is caused and the society accuses Westinghouse of unsafe use of electrical equipment, then the public's fear of electric shock can be used to completely defeat the opponent.
As it happens, the opportunity appeared. 1887 in order to adopt a more humane way of death penalty than hanging, the new York state legislature organized a three-person investigation team to study this matter. There is a doctor in the group named Cyrus Wick. The doctor respected Edison very much, so he wrote a letter to Edison and suggested whether electrocution could be used instead of hanging. At first, Edison flatly rejected this practice. But soon, Edison changed his mind and said that it could be done with a thousand volts of alternating current. The implication is to show everyone that since you are always boasting about your high-energy alternating current, well, let your alternating current electrocute you and see who dares to use your electrical products!
In order to win without fighting, Edison secretly supported a man named harold brown to invent an electric chair to execute the death penalty by alternating current. To this end, Edison not only allowed Brown to use his state-of-the-art laboratory in New Jersey, but also sent A.E. kennelly, one of the most important electrical experts from the company, to cooperate with Brown. But Edison has always been deaf and dumb to the outside world and kept it a secret.
188865438+On February 5th, Brown and Kenneley electrocuted two calves weighing 124 pounds and 145 pounds respectively in Edison's laboratory in front of New York State officials and journalists. In order to further demonstrate the lethality of alternating current, in the experiment, they hissed a horse weighing 1230 pounds with 700 volts alternating current. The New York Times commented afterwards: "This experiment proves that alternating current is the deadliest energy known to the scientific community. At present, the voltage of the current used for lighting in this city is less than half of this voltage, which is enough to cause immediate death. Alternating current will undoubtedly make the executioners in the whole state unemployed. " When this statement came out, the society was in an uproar.
Faced with the pressure of public opinion, Westinghouse has a well-meaning saying, which is really like a mouse falling into a pile of ashes-even holding its breath is fidgety. He had to write to The New York Times to explain, and said, "The general view is that harold brown accepted the payment from Edison Electric Company and engaged in these experiments for the benefit of the company." But these words, in the face of terrible death, are simply insignificant. Obviously, it was invented with Edison's support, but the credit should be recorded on the competitors, which really became an anecdote in the history of scientific and technological inventions.
With Edison's help, Brown bought an AC engine produced by Westinghouse through a second-hand dealer and made it into an electric chair. 1August 6, 890, New York State executed the death penalty with this electric chair for the first time. The New York Times made a comprehensive and detailed report on the death penalty. Strictly speaking, the execution of the death penalty with the electric chair was not successful. Under the electric shock of 17 second, the criminal sitting in the electric chair was not electrocuted. Seeing this scene, the delegates who watched the execution of criminals outside the execution room were shocked, and some even fainted. Even the local prosecutor was scared out of the door. In order to carry out electrocution to the end, continue to connect the current. Because the electric shock lasted too long, the blood vessels under the criminal's skin ruptured, and he was covered in blood and smelled of burning. In response to this horrible scene, new york's Sun reported: "Westinghouse's communication equipment can really kill people." Edison invented the electric chair and finally achieved the goal of making his opponent stink.
The original intention of scientific and technological invention is to promote the development of productive forces, create social wealth and benefit all mankind. However, if greed wins over dedication, emotion wins over reason, and meanness replaces nobility, then the invention of science and technology will not only distort personality, but also bring disaster to society. The invention in this case will not only bring benefits to society, but also be easily used as a tool to reject the development of science and technology and the progress of civilization. Edison's scandal shows that once a technological invention becomes a tool for scientists to seek personal gain, not only scientists will go astray, but even the technological invention itself will be humiliated.
Although Edison used disgraceful means to discredit his competitors, however, "the green hills can't cover up, after all, they flow eastward", and scientific and technological progress is independent of human will. Edison refused to use alternating current technology because he stood still. As a result, in just a few years, he lost the controlling stake in the electric company, and he also failed in the operation of another magnetic mine. He and J.P. Morgan founded the General Electric Company, and after him, he readily accepted the alternating current technology, and the profits continued. At present, General Electric Company has become the first of the top 500 companies in the world.