Character:Nikola Tesla

Historical Context
Nikola Tesla was a 19th Century Serbian-American inventor and 21st Century counter-cultural legend who made significant contributions to Alternating Current electrical systems.

Post-Resurrection
Soon after his resurrection, Nikola went to the Library of Virtually Everything to learn how the New Real was constructed. While at the Library, he met Charles Babbage and Rufus Brooks.

Nikola was impressed that Rufus managed to build an analytical engine on his own, which would become important later. At the time, Charles and Nikola were preoccupied and talked for hours about the use of Analytical Engines. The subject of how the machines could be built using electrical wires instead of clockwork was the central focus.

After a few months of work, the two men presented their idea to the Council of the Descendants, who accepted on the condition that the machine would be adapted for non-military use.

To build the machine, the two men enlisted the help of Rufus Brooks, who got one-third of the credit for the resultant Electric Library.

Tesla Motor
In 11948 NHE, Henry Ford approached Tesla about building busses in the New Real. The result of their collaboration was the Gaian Electric Bus Company, or GEB.

GEB's patented road electrification method consisted of an iron grating suspended above the road, and busses with copper coils on the end of long poles which could pick up electricity from the overhead grid. The company earned a lot of goodwill because the road electrification also doubled as an electrical grid for homes near the bus routes.

To this day, electric busses provide the majority of road transit, with driving licenses being a rarity in the New Real.