Nikola Tesla the Most Brilliant Mind and US Navy Commander Joseph Rochefort and his decoding team and the Battle of Midway

One of the greatest geniuses of all time and probably the most unappreciated. Even if you split hairs about Marconi and the radio, Edison's DC and Tesla's AC, the fact is that his genius crossed every spectrum and challenged every other inventor. I disagreed when Time said that Einstein was the Century's Greatest Man, Tesla and Gandhi have had a much more profound influence on our lives than the theoretical physics of Einstein. That isn't to say Einstein wasn't in the top 10, but every time you turn on an appliance you are using Tesla's Alternating Current. A great man that  I will always remember and treasure. The bottom photo shows Tesla, unafraid of the immense power of electricity. Braver man than I am. But maybe he knew something I don't. 

Thomas Edison electrocutes an elephant in 1903 to attack Nikola Tesla and the danger of AC Electricity.

Tesla did that after Edison electrocuted an elephant using Tesla AC power, trying to scare people into not using AC Electric Power. Today every powerline and power plant carries Tesla's AC Power. 

Tesla was told that a new invention, by someone else, was based on his ideas. Nikola Tesla responded, good for him, he took my ideas and made them better. He told his friend that he would never sue anyone for doing that. Edison sued everyone and made a huge fortune. Tesla died poor living a modest life. 

 

Though it may be apocryphal, it is an indication of the esteem in which Nikola Tesla was held by people who knew of him and the amazing things he did: Albert Einstein was asked by a reporter how it felt to be the smartest man in the world. He replied that you'll need to ask Nikola Tesla that question.  

The Battle of Midway and Lt. Commander Joseph Rochefort

Too often telling succinct stories leads Hollywood to shortchange the teams which contributed to greater successes. Especially when you have modest men and women leading the effort. Alan Turing was recognized as the most brilliant contributor to the decoding of the Nazi Enigma Encoding Machine at British Secret MI6 Bletchley Park. UK PM Winston Churchill said decoding Enigma was one of the main reasons we won WWII. Alan Turning turned down a lot of honors, always saying it was a team effort, which it was. While it is easier telling the story centering on one person and certainly Oppenheimer and Turing were great men, if you don't remember all involved you are short changing them and US today.

Lt. Commander Rochefort convinced Admiral Nimitz to have the Marine base at Midway Island send an uncoded message to Hawaii stating their water purification equipment failed and they would need fresh water brought immediately by tanker and new desalination equipment. Midway had no fresh water. For days Nimitz and his command waited. Then they heard a message on the Japanese Naval radio traffic, saying AF running out of water. From previous messages, Rochefort and his team had determined AF stood for Midway. 

Admiral Nimitz signing the Japanese Surrender aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Harbor

Japanese Attack on Pearl Harbor

Japanese bomber's photograph of their attack on Pearl Harbor

On December 7, 1941, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor Hawaii, without declaring war, which was a violation of international law. 

     US Losses                   Japanese Loses

4 battleships sunk 4 battleships damaged 1 ex-battleship sunk 1 harbor tug sunk 3 light cruisers damaged 3 destroyers damaged 3 other ships damaged 188 aircraft destroyed 159 aircraft damaged 2,008 sailors killed 109 Marines killed 208 soldiers killed 68 civilians killed 2,403 total killed 1,178 military and civilians wounded

4 midget submarines sunk 1 midget submarine grounded 29 aircraft destroyed 74 aircraft damaged 64 killed 1 sailor captured

The Japanese had almost wiped out the Pacific US Fleet. The only exception, 4 US Carriers were at sea. Japanese Admiral Yamamoto knew that to beat the US Navy in the Pacific he would have to destroy our carriers, oddly enough, that was the motivation for the attack on Pearl Harbor.  

Another example, brilliant cryptanalyst Lt. Commander Joseph Rochefort came up with the key to winning the greatest Naval Battle of WWII, The Battle of Midway. He came up with a prediction where the next Japanese strike at the US would occur, at Midway Island/Atoll, so we could set up an ambush. Midway is halfway between Hawaii and  Asia and of incredible strategic importance. Capturing Midway would make a Japanese Invasion much easier. Though heavily outgunned, we won. Because Rochefort was Catholic, the "old boy network" never recognized him or his contribution and his own modesty caused him to champion his team's efforts not his own. He did not win the Presidential Medal of Freedom until 1986, ten years  after he was dead.

One of the Japanese Fleet Carriers sunk during the Battle of Midway

Battle of Midway

US Losses                                                                              Japanese Losses

1 Fleet Carrier sunk                                                               4 Fleet Carriers sunk  

1 destroyer sunk                                                                    1 heavy cruiser sunk

150 aircraft destroyed                                                           1 heavy cruiser damaged

307 killed, including 3capture sailors                               2 destroyers damaged

                                                                                              248 aircraft destroyed 

                                                                                              3,057 killed, 37 captured