Every incandescent bulb reminds him. Every powerhouse is a monument to him. After Thomas Edison’s death, The New York Times wrote that wherever there is a tape recorder or a radio, wherever a movie is playing with or without sound, Edison is alive. However, for many, the name Edison is only associated with the light bulb. But did Edison invent the light bulb? Is it enough to connect Edison only with the invention of the light bulb? From a young age, Edison was interested in conducting various types of experiments; A person who led an eventful life in the world of science and technology.
∙ The Wizard of Menlo Park holds 1,093 patents
He dabbled in various fields of technology and is known as the Wizard of Menlo Park. It can be said that there are no areas untouched by him in technological discoveries such as motion pictures, fluoroscopy, battery etc. What’s more, he was able to acquire 1,093 patents in the United States alone during his lifetime. However, many of his moves to make new discoveries were criticized. The scientific world said that his moves were careless. Regardless, he had an insatiable drive to pursue new discoveries. There was no requirement to conduct only one type of experiment. According to National Geographic, he is seen as one of the greatest figures in the history of the United States, who was ready to do any experiment. Let’s first look at the story of the light bulb itself:
∙ The story of the light bulb
One of the important milestones in human inventions is the light bulb. It was with the advent of the filament bulb that ‘night became day’ became possible. It is generally believed that it was invented by Thomas Edison. But no. He is only one of the prominent people involved in its construction progress. Electric light bulbs have been around since the early 19th century. However, these primitive forms had a problem: the glowing filaments inside them would fuse on impulse. However, the light bulb introduced by Edison in 1879 set a record. It managed to burn for 14.5 hours!
∙ bragging
“At last I was able to make a perfect light bulb,” he told a New York Times reporter that year. Hearing about the bulb, people flocked to Menlo Park where it was on display. The new light bulb was exhibited on December 31, 1879. It was said by scientists and non-scientists alike that Edison had discovered the light of the future. However, later a black man named Louis Latimer made many changes to Edison’s bulb. Its filaments are made to last longer. Also, it made it easy to make. Edison then established an electric utility and made electric light more accessible to more people. With this, Edison gained global fame.
∙ AC-DC current battle
There was a neck-and-neck competition for electrical current at that time. Edison’s electrical systems used DC (direct current) electricity. If several buildings were close together, it was easy for DC current to supply electricity to all of them. However, Edison’s opponents in the current war were not bad at all. Serbian American scientist Nikola Tesla and businessman George Westinghouse were among others. They tried to bring forward alternating current (AC). It was cheaper to produce and easier to transport over long distances.
∙ Electric chair joke
Edison was using the media to gain an edge against Tesla and Westinghouse. He tried to infer that AC current was the cause of all electrocution deaths. Apart from this, he also gave newspaper advertisements against alternating current. Advertisements touted how deadly they could be. In any case, when the competition was tight, he even paid to publicly show experiments showing the killing of animals with AC current. His technology but the pinnacle of all this was the creation of the electric chair. Edison secretly paid for it. He even managed to make sure it worked on AC current! But he failed miserably in this regard. Pragmatism won out. The additional cost of generating DC power, and Edison’s reduced influence on the electric utility he had already created, led to the failure.
∙ An insatiably curious young man
Born in Ohio in 1847, Edison spent his childhood in Port Huron, Michigan. Did not receive much formal education. Edison’s mother, a former school teacher, took her son from the age of seven. Edison, on the other hand, read a lot. But the biographer says that Edison’s adventurous chemical experiments in his parents’ basement as a child brought him to the brink of big explosions and major accidents.
∙ From newspaper trading to newspaper printing, that too by train!
Edison’s interest in business was visible even at the age of 12. The young Edison began working as one of the men selling newspapers, snacks and other items to the passengers on the train. However, he felt that selling newspapers was not enough and decided to print his own newspaper! Edison was the first to publish a newspaper on a running train! It was called the Grand Trunk Herald. He also continued his chemistry experiments on the train. It is said that he started a small lab. If you set fire to the bogie of the train by doing the experiment, it’s a wonder if you don’t get fired!
∙ Number of patents dismissed?
He also acquired the unique ability to be constantly fired from the jobs he was offered as a child by the age of 15. It is even joked that he has been fired as many times as the number of patents he has acquired. The fact that he was doing experiments along with the work made his employers angry. After working as a telegrapher, he moved to New York and opened his own workshop. It can also be seen that his proximity to the telegraph benefited many of his inventions. Many of the first patents he obtained were related to this field. He invented the quadriplegic telegraph when he was 27 years old (in 1874). This enabled telegraphers to send four messages simultaneously. This was a discovery that quadrupled the efficiency of this industry. He thereby eliminated the need to lay more telegraph lines.
∙ Engaging in various jobs is also beneficial
It is said that this constant process of getting jobs and getting fired has benefited him. This has enabled the future innovators to acquire knowledge of various fields. When many think of Edison, a quote from him comes to mind – ‘Genius is 1 percent inspiration and 99 percent perspiration.’ In any case, it may be due to hard work and diverse experiences that he made possible the construction of many devices that changed the world. He was also able to make many inventions more useful; Including the lightbulb. It is not for nothing that he is hailed as one of the greatest inventors of all time.
English Summary: Thomas Edison didn’t invent the light bulb—but here’s what he did do