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How extraordinary was my life an incident may illustrate... [As a youth] I was fascinated by a description of Niagara Falls. I had perused, and pictured in my imagination a big wheel run by the Falls. I told my uncle that I would go to America and carry out this scheme. Thirty years later I saw my ideas carried out at Niagara and marveled at the unfathomable mystery of the mind.
Nikola Tesla
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Interpretation

What this quote means

The quote reflects on how imagination and innovative ideas can lead to remarkable realizations over time.

In this quote, Nikola Tesla reminisces about his childhood fascination with Niagara Falls and how it inspired him to envision a grand project involving the Falls. Thirty years later, he witnessed the realization of that vision, emphasizing the incredible potential of the human mind to conceive and bring forth extraordinary ideas, showcasing the journey from imagination to reality.

Themes

ImaginationInnovationVisionChangeLife

In practice

Example use cases

During a motivational speech about pursuing dreams and aspirations.

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Even matter called inorganic, believed to be dead, responds to irritants and gives unmistakable evidence of a living principle within. Everything that exists, organic or inorganic, animated or inert, is susceptible to stimulus from the outside.
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The history of science shows that theories are perishable. With every new truth that is revealed we get a better understanding of Nature and our conceptions and views are modified.
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The Secretary of Hygiene or Physical Culture will be far more important in the cabinet of the President of the United States who holds office in the year 2035 than the Secretary of War.
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I am unwilling to accord to some small−minded and jealous individuals the satisfaction of having thwarted my efforts. These men are to me nothing more than microbes of a nasty disease. My project was retarded by laws of nature. The world was not prepared for it. It was too far ahead of time, but the same laws will prevail in the end and make it a triumphal success.
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