Life — January 29, 1925 — page 12: what you’re looking at

What you’re looking at

# Analysis This page from *Life* magazine illustrates the history of electricity discoveries through six scientist caricatures: **Thales of Miletus** (640-546 BC) discovered amber generates electric charge through friction. **Alessandro Volta** (1745-1827) invented the voltaic pile (early battery). **Benjamin Franklin** (1706-1790) demonstrated lightning is electricity. **André-Marie Ampère** (1775-1836) developed electromagnetic theory. **Samuel F.B. Morse** (1791-1872) perfected the electric telegraph. **Alexander Graham Bell** (1847-1922) invented the telephone. The cartoon humorously depicts each scientist suffering or struggling with their respective discoveries—shock, exhaustion, or obsessive focus—suggesting the personal toll of scientific breakthroughs. This satirizes how inventors often sacrifice comfort and safety pursuing knowledge.