The electric wind was one of the earliest manifestations of the gaseous discharge to have been discovered and a subject of active investigation among electrical experimenters of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Today, after a period of relative neglect, interest in this phenomenon has been revived. Recent publications consider the practicability of applying the wind mechanism to fluid pumps, high-voltage generators, loudspeakers, thermoelectric converters, and other devices. The historical background of the electric wind from the earliest times is presented here together with a selected bibliography.

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