Thus, "the idea of the 'mad inventor' is elegantly replaced with invention as a skill within the grasp of us all," says David Thornburg, PhD, director, Thornburg Center for Space Exploration and ...

Nikolai Tesla, the Serbian who invented alternating current and wireless technology was so obsessed with the number three and could not enter a building before walking around it three times.

But what transforms him from mad inventor to visionary leader is his ability to convince the world of the viability of his projects, even ideas like a tube-based transit system called the Hyper-loop.