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I've heard that at some point in Tesla's life he came up with a now-unknown energy source. I would like to know if you have any information (background, possible energy source, etc.) that you could relate. I've always found subjects such as this interesting.

Among his various pursuits Nikola Tesla had a lifelong involvement with the identification and harnessing of energy sources. His early dream of deriving electrical power from waterfalls and the vision's subsequent fulfillment at Niagara Falls and elsewhere is a classic example of this. In addition to falling water, he also recognized the energy potential of the wind, the sun and, perhaps most importantly, terrestrial heat�what is now referred to as geothermal energy. As his experience grew he became convinced that it should also be possible to obtain energy directly from the ambient medium. This can be seen from his words spoken during a lecture before the American Institute of Electrical Engineers, at Columbia College, N.Y., May 20, 1891.

"We are whirling through endless space with an inconceivable speed, all around us everything is spinning, everything is moving, everywhere is energy. There must be some way of availing ourselves of this energy more directly.
     [Inventions Researches and Writings of Nikola Tesla, "Experiments With Alternate Currents of Very High Frequency and Their Application to Methods of Artificial Illumination," pp. 196-197.] 

By June 1900 in his article "The Problem of Increasing Human Energy" (see online text) Tesla was able to report his first efforts to produce what he called a "self-acting engine."  His design was inspired by the work in cryogenics conducted by Dewar and Linde which showed that it was possible to reach a very low temperature by transforming heat into mechanical work. The machine itself was based partly upon his reciprocating mechanical oscillator.  While his expectations were high for a practical realization of the idea, circumstances were such that he turned away from the project in favor of more fertile ground.

A later reference to the tapping of a non-conventional energy source was published in the Brooklyn Eagle, July 10, 1932. In the article he said, "I have harnessed the cosmic rays and caused them to operate a motive device," though admitting, "the amount of power he was able to develop in the device was insignificant."  The article can be found in Solutions to Tesla's Secrets, pp. 95-97.  It is possible this motor was related to the single wire/no wire motor demonstrated during his 1892 lecture in London.  This lecture is in Inventions Researches and Writings of Nikola Tesla, pp. 233-235.

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