6 Comments

Great column! I have read about LL Nunn and the advent of AC power, in bits and pieces, my whole life growing up in Telluride and through my grandpa's histories. I often run around Ilium, Ames, up to the Powerhouse above Bridalveil, and to Gold King next to Alta Lakes, and marvel at the tech developments that transformed the region in the late 19th century. This was one of the best and most readable accounts of this history I've read. The Pinheads live on— the Pinhead Institute science academy in Telluride is a great program for teens, and "Pinterns" are interns who do science and maker internships around the country.

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Probably your best column! At one time, electric cars outsold ICE powered cars at the turn of the last century. However, battery range was very poor and ICE power dominated. Is history going to repeat itself when it comes to EV vs. ICE? FYI, Edison's first shot at commercial DC was in the Hotel Coronado in San Diego. Frank Baum wrote the Wizard of Oz at the same hotel

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Nov 9Liked by Jonathan P. Thompson

I love this piece.

Tesla was indeed born in Croatia, but was ethnically a Serb, his father a Serbian Orthodox priest in a largely Serbian village. Nikola is buried in Belgrade, where the international airport bears his name. ... and a side note: Mark Twain, suffering from hemorrhoids, went to Tesla for help. Tesla had him stand on a metal plate and electrocuted the hell out of the hemorrhoids...to no effect

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Nov 7Liked by Jonathan P. Thompson

Fascinating history very well reported! Thanks, Jonathan.

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Great article!

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