Last week, Professor Tom Vales gave our class a brief, but very informative, presentation.  Professor Vales began the presentation by telling us about alternating currents.  Alternating current is when charges periodically change directions.  Alternating current is what is used in the Tesla coil, invented by Nikola Tesla.  The Tesla coil increases frequency and voltage.  Professor Vales then gave us a demonstration using the Tesla coil and different kinds of lights.

He first showed us what the spark looked like on its own.  Its hard to see in the photo, but the spark is about seven inches tall.

Next, he showed us what happens when a light comes within close proximity of the spark.  As you can see, the lights light up.  This amazed me because the lights were not attached to anything, they lit up because they were close to the spark.

Professor Vales completed his presentation by showing us how you can make the spark spin in a circular motion. It’s difficult to see in this photo, but that is what is happening here.

Although brief, the presentation was very informative and fun to watch.