Alessandro Volta: 270 Years For The Electric Battery Founder

Alessandro Volta, after whom the electrical unit ‘volt’ is named was the inventor of the first electric battery. It was the same man who discovered the methane gas and isolated it. He was the first one to write electromotive series. Alessandro Volta’s discoveries and inventions in the field of electrical science is so great that the unit of electric potential was given his name ‘Volt.’

Here are a few facts about Alessandro Volta that inspires us,

No sign of talking till four years

Volta showed no sign of speech till the age of 4, this became a family dismay which made his family to lose hope in him. By the age of 7, Volta picked up his speaking skills faster and at one point of his life he could speak 5 languages fluently- Italian, English, German, Latin and French.

Supposed to be a lawyer but….

Volta’s family wanted him to become a lawyer, but Volt had other plans for himself.  He was mesmerized with science and its miracles. He chose to pursue science and became one of the greatest scientists in the field of electrical science.

He Was Greatly Influenced by Benjamin Franklin

Volta came across a paper by Benjamin Franklin on “flammable air” and this lead to research and discovery of methane. If this makes you wonder how Benjamin Franklin fits in picture with science, let me tell you that we very well know Benjamin Franklin as an author, politician, civic activist, statesman, diplomat but he was also a scientist. He was popular for his invention of lightning rods, bifocals, Franklin stove and many more.

From a frog to battery.

Volta and his friend, an anatomy professor were dissecting a frog. Volta observed how the frog’s leg twitched following an electrical discharge. This led Volta to conclude that two different metals touching together creates current. And this theory became the base for Volta’s invention of electric battery. It took him more than six years to make the first electric battery.

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