Exploring the Evolution of Electrical Engineering

Cas Taylor

Selah Weems

Eng. 101

10/04/17

The History of Electrical Engineering

Engineering is the cornerstone for human development. Engineers are problem solvers who search for quicker, better, cheaper, and more efficient ways to solve problems. Engineers use their knowledge in mathematics and natural sciences to produce and enhance modern technology. It combines different subsets of mathematics, science, and technology. The profession applies scientific theory to design, develop, and analyze technological solutions. It is generally accepted that the four major branches of engineering are mechanical, civil, chemical, and electrical. There are numerous other divisions derived from the concentrations, combinations, or extensions of the major

Farnsworth. Responsible for inventions such as the electric light bulb, induction motor, radio, and television. These innovators molded ideas and concepts about electricity to innovate inventions for practical use. Believed to be the first and referred to as the “father of electrical engineering,” William Gilbert developed the vesorium, essentially a metal needle mounted on a base with the ability to spin freely. The vesorium could detect the difference of charged and non-charged particles; it would spin towards charged objects, letting the user know they were carrying some amount of static electricity. Now an unusual tool to find, it was the precursor to the electroscope, a device that is used to detect the magnitude of an electrical

Thomas Edison, famed for inventing the light bulb and phonograph, embraced the standard method of direct-current, or DC, power distribution. Produced by batteries and dynamos, DC describes the unidirectional flow of an electrical charge. But George Westinghouse, the electrical engineer who built a fortune by making improvements to America’s railroad system, threw his weight behind the development of a power network based on alternating current, or AC, a more efficient transmission method whose magnitude changes cyclically. Nikola Tesla, one of the most eccentric and prolific electrical engineers in history also was in favor of AC. Tesla, whose work formed the basis of AC power, is one of the most admired pioneers in electrical engineering. In the 20th century, electrical engineering, like many other technologies, has expanded leaps and bounds. By 1900, the radio was already in common use, and developments over the next few decades made it even more useful. Guglielmo Marconi, the inventor of the telegraph, made radio useful worldwide, developing the first transatlantic radio transmissions. During and after World War II, radio became more prevalent in communications and guidance. The development of the integrated circuit in 1958 led to the advent of electronic engineering, after which came the personal computer,