Werner von Siemens

Ernst Werner Siemens was born on 13 December 1816 in Germany, trained as an electrical engineer, and turned his technical mind toward invention. His dynamo became the engine of a new electrical era, but he didn't stop at theory: he invented the electric tram, trolley bus, electric locomotive, and electric elevator, then founded the electrical and telecommunications conglomerate that still bears his name. He worked on the development of the electric car and watched his innovations reshape urban transport and industry. In 1888 he was ennobled, becoming von Siemens. He died on 6 December 1892, six days short of his seventy-sixth birthday, having seen his surname adopted as the SI unit of electrical conductance - the siemens - a measure now spoken in labs worldwide.