Bringing you another true story in celebration of Gelotology's 50th update! You can't make this stuff up. I left out the part where Edison electrocuted a bunch of dogs with AC current to demonstrate how "dangerous" it was. (Of course, his motivation was money, not scientific soundness or safety.) Our current power grid could not exist without alternating current. Electric chairs actually use both alternating and direct current – it is the direct current that deals the fatal shock. If you want to learn more, read about the War of Currents.
The history of science is brimming with plot. Scientists have always been a combative lot. Mudslinging, back-stabbing, and not uncommonly dueling (yes, with pistols) have been an unofficial but prevalent part of the "scientific method." In modern times, the weapons in the scientific community have changed, but the spirit has not. The most aggressive scientists still have their voices heard and their theories accepted while sometimes the more accurate models and theories stay in relative darkness until a later date. In time, most things get sorted out, but there will always be an opposing scientific view regardless of the validity of the accepted model. (For example, there is still a group who insist that the earth is flat.) If you ever hear the phrase, "scientists agree," laugh. Loudly.
I was originally going to label the "switch" with a happy face and sad face, but this amused me more.
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