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Born in Como, Alessandro Giuseppe Antonio Anastasio Volta was an Italian physicist credited with the invention of the first electrical battery, the Voltaic pile, which he invented in 1799. With this invention Volta proved that electricity could be generated chemically and debased the prevalent theory that electricity was generated solely by living beings. Volta's invention sparked a great amount of scientific excitement and led others to conduct similar experiments which eventually led to the development of the field of electrochemistry.