WEBVTT - Topsy Rides the Lighting

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Stuff from the Science Lab from how stuff

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<v Speaker 1>works dot com. Hey guys, welcome to the podcast. This

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<v Speaker 1>is Alban ladermer Like, the science editor at how stuff

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<v Speaker 1>works dot com. And this is Robert Lamb, science writer

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<v Speaker 1>at how stuff works dot com. Today we're talking about

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<v Speaker 1>the ward occurrence and world tops the Elephant. Yeah, did

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<v Speaker 1>you see the video clip I sent you? I did,

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<v Speaker 1>I did see the TOPSI clip. Um, it was pretty

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<v Speaker 1>mind boggling, it is. I mean, one second Topsy's walking

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<v Speaker 1>out there kind of blurry in and black and white,

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<v Speaker 1>but walking out their full life sort of. And the

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<v Speaker 1>next yeah, she's smoking and killed over poor Topsy. And

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<v Speaker 1>it was all filmed by Thomas Alva Edison, forefather of

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<v Speaker 1>the motion picture industry. YEP. On January, Luna Park Zoo

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<v Speaker 1>and Coney Island people to gather. The people gathered to

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<v Speaker 1>watch this elephant die. Why why? Indeed, now that the

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<v Speaker 1>reason for this elephant's death supposedly was that Topsy had

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<v Speaker 1>allegedly killed three zoo handlers. Of course, this is nineteen

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<v Speaker 1>o three at a zoo on Coney Island, so the

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<v Speaker 1>conditions were not that great. Yeah, I have a hard

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<v Speaker 1>time to get up. Yeah, I have a hard time

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<v Speaker 1>siding with the zoo workers, especially since one of them

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<v Speaker 1>apparently tried to feed her a lit cigarette and that's

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<v Speaker 1>why Topsy squashed him. Yeah, I don't blame Topsy for

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<v Speaker 1>that one. Yeah. When so they're gonna they're gonna kill

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<v Speaker 1>this elephant, right right, They talked about hanging the elephant,

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<v Speaker 1>didn't maybe, but New York had recently outlawed hanging in

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<v Speaker 1>some super nice person pointed out that it probably wouldn't

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<v Speaker 1>be nice to do it to an elephant either, And

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<v Speaker 1>I think they'd also tried to kill poor Topsy by

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<v Speaker 1>cyanide as well before that. So they're they're looking for

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<v Speaker 1>another means of doing it. And suddenly Thomas Edison, stained

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<v Speaker 1>and Winner steps up to the plate and says, hey,

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<v Speaker 1>let me electrocute this elephant. Why why would he do

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<v Speaker 1>such a thing. Well, at the time, he was pretty

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<v Speaker 1>game about if you needed an animal electrocuted, or or

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<v Speaker 1>even a person, Thomas Edison was the guy to talk to.

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<v Speaker 1>He would uh uh not of course, not because he

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<v Speaker 1>was He would bring his own brand of electricity, the

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<v Speaker 1>DC or direct current uh for but he loved to

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<v Speaker 1>use his competitors a C, which is Tesla, right, yes,

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<v Speaker 1>Tesla backed by Westinghouse. He would he'd love to bring

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<v Speaker 1>that product forward and kill stray dogs, stray cats, horses, cows,

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<v Speaker 1>um all kind of in this quest to prove the

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<v Speaker 1>alternating current was this, you know, rampant force that couldn't

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<v Speaker 1>be controlled. I think there is a really good quote there. Yes,

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<v Speaker 1>this is from a Westinghouse actually who worked with Tesla.

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<v Speaker 1>He said, I remember Tom telling me, telling them that

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<v Speaker 1>the red current was like a river flowing peacefully to

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<v Speaker 1>that sea, while alternating current was like a torrent rushing

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<v Speaker 1>violently over a precipice. Imagine that. Uh. Edison was always

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<v Speaker 1>game to discredit alternating current, and this was his gig.

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<v Speaker 1>This was his his crazy PR move that he pulled. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>it's it's like if you were if you were the

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<v Speaker 1>spokesman for Pepsi and you like drown kittens and vats

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<v Speaker 1>of Coca cola or something. I mean that's kind of

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<v Speaker 1>what this was. Not that PEPs here cook has ever

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<v Speaker 1>done such a thing or whatever. Contemplate it's such a thing,

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<v Speaker 1>but yeah, definitely. So it was a killer PR where

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<v Speaker 1>and Edison was pulling some serious tricks out of his

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<v Speaker 1>PR bag. Um yeah. I mean, and one thing you

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<v Speaker 1>have to keep in mind too is this was we

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<v Speaker 1>might we take it electricity for granted a lot right now. Um,

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<v Speaker 1>I mean we have like novelty, Like I have a

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<v Speaker 1>novelty lamp on my desk that does nothing but just

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<v Speaker 1>light and smile at people, you know. But in the

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<v Speaker 1>I in in this time, I mean, electricity was crazy.

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<v Speaker 1>It was magical. It was this this strange force of

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<v Speaker 1>nature that we didn't really necessarily understand, and it could

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<v Speaker 1>kill people and maybe it could heal people, and maybe

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<v Speaker 1>it could power the future. And we're at this yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>that we're exactly We're at this turning point in history

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<v Speaker 1>where it was about to we were about to figure

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<v Speaker 1>out what was going to power industry and what was

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<v Speaker 1>going to power the world essentially. And it was this

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<v Speaker 1>fight between the two main candidates, alternating current and direct current.

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<v Speaker 1>And on one hand we have you know, Nicola Tesla,

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<v Speaker 1>famed inventor who came over from Eastern Europe and like

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<v Speaker 1>what eighteen late eighteen hundreds, and he filed these seven

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<v Speaker 1>patents on behalf of alternating current, and he said, you

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<v Speaker 1>know what, I can supply all your power with this

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<v Speaker 1>awesome system in Western House said yeah, you sure can,

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<v Speaker 1>and it sounds like a great invention. And you know,

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<v Speaker 1>Tesla was right. I mean, a C powers is what

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<v Speaker 1>travels through a power lines. It's what you know, our

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<v Speaker 1>houses and our businesses run on. And then you have

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<v Speaker 1>direct current and direct currents a little bit more docile,

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<v Speaker 1>if you will. And that was Thomas Edison's baby. And uh,

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<v Speaker 1>I mean direct current hasn't totally been ruled out. I

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<v Speaker 1>mean we still use it in fuel cells and solar

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<v Speaker 1>cells and stuff like that. But Thomas Hays and he

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<v Speaker 1>knew he was on a he was on the losing end. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>his back against the wall. And um, you know it's

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<v Speaker 1>like in politics, what do you do? You start fighting dirty?

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<v Speaker 1>You started slinging a little nud and electrocuting stray cats.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah yeah, I mean because he didn't he didn't really

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<v Speaker 1>have a good case on his hand because a C power, right,

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<v Speaker 1>you know, it can't travel as well over um or

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<v Speaker 1>a C power is actually better at traveling over long

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<v Speaker 1>distances in d C. And uh, he he knew he was.

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<v Speaker 1>He was. He was screwed essentially, And like like I said,

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<v Speaker 1>it's like he tapped into that fear that what the

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<v Speaker 1>heck is this electricity? And and is it dangerous? And

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<v Speaker 1>you know, so he played on this whole idea that

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<v Speaker 1>if you start hooking up your homes and your cities

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<v Speaker 1>to a c power, you're just you're hooking yourself up

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<v Speaker 1>to the Maelstrom here. Yeah, this uncontrollable power essentially. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>and in electricity, electrical wiring was kind of shaky in

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<v Speaker 1>those days, like, uh uh, there's this a weird case

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<v Speaker 1>from Boston in eighteen ninety where a thousand volt wire

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<v Speaker 1>came down and charged up the iron work in front

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<v Speaker 1>of this building on Washington Street, and the crowd, the

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<v Speaker 1>crowd started gathering because even standing on the sidewalk a

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<v Speaker 1>ways back, they could feel it, you know, in the

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<v Speaker 1>in the in the cement. And they all just stood

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<v Speaker 1>there and watched as a dog walked walked up to

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<v Speaker 1>the iron and was just like killed instantly, but then

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<v Speaker 1>burned to a crisp as well. And they're just you know,

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<v Speaker 1>standing there in awe and fear at the spectacle of it. Yeah.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, the cities used to be hung with a

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<v Speaker 1>live wires, at least in Brooklyn. And I heard that

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<v Speaker 1>the residents of Brooklyn used to have to dodge the

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<v Speaker 1>live wires and guess what, people, that's where we got

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<v Speaker 1>Brooklyn Dodgers supposedly. I think they should bring that back.

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<v Speaker 1>I might actually watch baseball if there were live wires

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<v Speaker 1>on the field and they're having to hit the ball

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<v Speaker 1>and then duck under and definitely add an element of surprise, no,

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<v Speaker 1>no doubt. Yeah, so ultimately not a good idea. I mean,

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<v Speaker 1>Topsy was a it was a senseless sacrifice in the

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<v Speaker 1>war of currents. Yeah, she probably lived her life under

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<v Speaker 1>you know, pretty poor conditions there on Coney Island. And

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<v Speaker 1>then uh was maybe even frame for these murders. I'm not,

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<v Speaker 1>I mean possibly sound bit true. But if you want

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<v Speaker 1>to read more about elephants, electricity, A, C, D C.

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<v Speaker 1>Are there any other ways to kill an elephant? T

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<v Speaker 1>NT dynamite perhaps, And how Nikola test would change the

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<v Speaker 1>way we use energy, we can always head on over

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<v Speaker 1>to how staff works dot com. Fantastic electric website yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>no doubt. Hey, and you know what, we have a

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<v Speaker 1>blog too, Yeah, the spiffy sign stuff flog at blogs

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<v Speaker 1>dot has staff works dot com. So that's all we

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<v Speaker 1>got for you today, guys. For more on this and

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<v Speaker 1>thousands of other topics is that how stuff works dot Com.

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