Power engineer

An opening film explores electricity's timeline: sparks created from rubbed amber, William Gilbert's study of magnetism, Benjamin Franklin's demonstration of lightening as electricity in 1752, Alessandro Volta's first electric battery, and Thomas Edison's 1879 incandescent electric light. Willis Gore, Johns Hopkins University assistant professor of electrical engineering, points out that an engineer both creates or invents and operates what he has produced. He uses a servosystem to demonstrate two branches of electric engineering: communications (electronics) and power (generation and utilization of power). Thomas Trice, superintendent of electrical operations of Baltimore Gas and Electric, says that electrical engineering has emerged as a leading profession as electrical demand has increased dramatically since 1910. A film of the electrical planning process stresses reliability of service, safety, and cost of a design. An electrical power analyzer is shown and explained as are meters and relays designed for accuracy and dependability at the Herbert A. Wagner electric generating station in Baltimore. Another film follows the generation of electricity from the coal pile through an electrical power plant and over wires to various customers. George Bisset, senior vice president of Potomac Electric Power Co. in Washington, DC, discusses the shortage of electrical engineers, noting that atomic energy will not replace electrical energy, and that use will at least double every ten years. He recommends that interested students take physics and math courses and consult a vocational counselor, college, or local electric company for additional advice. The profession offers prestige, satisfaction, and good compensation and working conditions.