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Thales of Miletos deduced that friction made amber magnetic, unlike some other minerals.
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Studied electricity and magnetism, and distinguished lodestone effect from static electricity made from rubbing amber. Gave rise to the words "electric' and "electricity".
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Benjamin Franklin decided to fly a kite with a key attached to it during a thunderstorm to prove that lightning sparks share similarities. He performed this experiment after some others in France.
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Converts mechanical energy into electrical energy. Originally invented by Luigi Aloisio Galvani, but improved by Michael Faraday later on.
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Luigi Galvani discovered bioelectricity. Showed that nerve cells passing signals to muscles is a form of electricity.
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Alessandro Volta created the first battery, as the result of a professional disagreement with his colleague Galvani. Consisted of two electrodes, one made of zinc and the other copper.
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He created the Photophone, which allowed for transmissions of sound and conversion of a beam of light. World's first wireless telephone.
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John D. Grant drills a well near San Francisco and builds the first geothermal power plant in the United States. His plants were able to produce 250 kilowatts. This was enough energy to power his hotel and resort.
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The wind turbine was installed in Vermont. It had the capability of producing 1.25 megawatts. It remained the largest wind turbine ever built until 1979.
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The United State's first commercial nuclear power plant was opened in Shippingport, Pennsylvania. The plant split uranium atoms to produce energy.
