Electrifying America: From Thomas Edison to Climate Change

by I. David Rosenstein

On September 4, 1882, Thomas Edison flipped a switch and illuminated an office building in New York's financial district for the first time. But before Edison could achieve his goal of "lighting the world," he was challenged by George Westinghouse and his alternating current system. The ensuring War of the Electric Currents played out before the entire nation and became a vicious personal battle between Edison, Westinghouse and Nicola Tesla. The War of the Electric Currents was only the first in a long series of challenges to the reliable and affordable delivery of electric service in America. It was followed by the excesses of the Power Trusts of the 1920s, multiple large scale blackouts, the 1973 Arab Oil Embargo, the Three Mile Island nuclear accident, California's misadventure with competitive electric supply and Enron's bankruptcy. The challenges continue to this day with fears of cyberattacks on the electric grid, the aging energy infrastructure and the need to respond to the threat of climate change. As part of his journey through the evolution of electric service, 40-year industry veteran, I. David Rosenstein, provides a fascinating insider's perspective on recent events from electric industry restructuring to the efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. He shows that no matter how daunting the challenges, the electric industry and its policy makers have always met the challenges head-on and ensured delivery of electric service to homes and businesses that meets the public interest.

Genres: History

148 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 25, 2017

About the author

I. David Rosenstein is the author of Electrifying America: From Thomas Edison to Climate Change. David grew up in Ohio and received his engineering and law degrees from the University of Cincinnati. After graduating from law school he entered private practice where he represented electric users in opposition to rate increase requests filed by electric utilities at state regulatory agencies throughout the country. When the electric industry transitioned from regulation to competition David left private practice to work in the independent power production industry. During the years when that industry was consolidating through mergers and acquisitions David worked first as Vice President and General Counsel for Conectiv Energy, LLC in Wilmington, Delaware. After that company was sold to a larger independent power producer he took the same position at Essential Power, LLC in Princeton, New Jersey. It was not long before that company was also sold to a larger independent power producer. When asked to describe his 40-year career as an attorney specializing in the field of utility law, he says: "The tires of electric industry restructuring have left their tracks on my back." David now lives with his wife at the Atlantic Ocean in Coastal Delaware.

Reviews

[Barbara Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author is an engineer and lawyer who has spent more than forty years in the industry. Rosenstein begins his story in the mid-nineteenth century. He reminds readers that everyday tasks were time-consuming, back-breaking tasks before the advent of electricity. Soon electricity would transform life in the home, on the farm, in the office, in the factory, and on construction sites. Before that energy could be utilized, someone needed to invent the electric light bulb.


Thomas Edison already possessed a long list of inventions before tackling electricity. His work with the telegraph, telephone and phonograph had great potential. Unfortunately, Edison was a lot better at inventing than implementing his ideas in the business world. The fatal flaw in Edison's direct current could be found in its limited ability to deliver electricity at any distance from a dynamo.


Nicholas Tesla had left his native Hungary to work with Edison in his lab. Edison's insistence on using direct current led to a break when Tesla failed to convince him to consider using alternating current. Tesla left in 1885 to work independently. George Westinghouse had been experimenting with transformers to increase the voltage of alternating current over greater distances from dynamos. Westinghouse invited Tesla to use his facilities to develop a motor to use his system in factories and businesses. During the 1880's and 1890's, the two competing systems of AC and DC battled for supremacy in “The War of the Electric Current.”


After presenting the early history, Rosenstein moves on the powerful monopolies of the 1920's, and the Golden Age of Electricity after World War II when the world turned back to business development on the home front. He talks about the failures of the industry in the Great Blackout in the Northeast in 1965 and traces the crises of the Oil Embargo of 1973 and the difficulties in California during the 90's.


By the end of the 1900's retail electric companies had begun to access electricity through a system of independent suppliers. Then the author discusses recent history and the issues leading up to climate control and the Paris accord. He ends the book by stating his opinion that a reconsideration of the concept of energy supply responding to public sentiments will likely lead to substantial changes in the future.


This story is an interesting study written by an expert in the field in layman's terms. The concise book contains less than 150 pages and is easy to follow. Students who have an interest in history, electrical engineering and inventions would find this book a good resource. Recommended for anyone age ten or older.

[Sherrie · Rating 2 out of 5]

***I won this book in a Goodreads Giveaway***

This was a decent extended abstract for a book. It was not, however, a finished book. The author was very blunt. Each sentence stating a fact...but there was no color to it. There was a lot left unsaid. It's just hard to care about utility regulations when there's no context to put it in. The author would have done us all a favor if he had expanded the book from 106 pages to maybe 300. Tell us about society, and personalities, and WHY things happened instead of just listing what did happen.