Podcast
Questions and Answers
Edison's invention of a machine for Western Union ultimately benefited which competitor, and how?
Edison's invention of a machine for Western Union ultimately benefited which competitor, and how?
Jay Gould benefited from Edison's invention, as Edison sold it to him (Gould), a rival of Western Union.
Besides financiers, what other group helped financially support the invention of the lightbulb?
Besides financiers, what other group helped financially support the invention of the lightbulb?
The Vanderbilts helped financially support the invention of the lightbulb.
In what way did Alexander Graham Bell contribute to Edison's phonograph, and what was Edison's response?
In what way did Alexander Graham Bell contribute to Edison's phonograph, and what was Edison's response?
Bell improved upon Edison's initial phonograph design. Edison then focused on the commercialization of the phonograph at his new laboratory.
Identify at least three inventions or innovations Edison developed at his new laboratory in West Orange, N.J.
Identify at least three inventions or innovations Edison developed at his new laboratory in West Orange, N.J.
What personal motivation heavily influenced Edison's career as an inventor?
What personal motivation heavily influenced Edison's career as an inventor?
What evidence suggests that Edison was motivated by practical application and manufacturing potential rather than purely theoretical pursuits?
What evidence suggests that Edison was motivated by practical application and manufacturing potential rather than purely theoretical pursuits?
Edison's carbon-button transmitter is still used in what devices today?
Edison's carbon-button transmitter is still used in what devices today?
Where was the world’s first permanent commercial central power system installed under Edison's guidance, and in what year?
Where was the world’s first permanent commercial central power system installed under Edison's guidance, and in what year?
What prior work experience did Edison have before dedicating himself to inventing and entrepreneurship?
What prior work experience did Edison have before dedicating himself to inventing and entrepreneurship?
How many patents did Edison hold, and how many were specifically for electric light and power?
How many patents did Edison hold, and how many were specifically for electric light and power?
Flashcards
Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison
American inventor with little formal schooling, born in 1847.
Quadruplex Telegraph
Quadruplex Telegraph
A device capable of sending four telegraph messages down one wire.
Menlo Park Laboratory
Menlo Park Laboratory
World’s first industrial research lab, created by Edison.
Carbon-button Transmitter
Carbon-button Transmitter
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Phonograph
Phonograph
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Incandescent Lightbulb
Incandescent Lightbulb
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Manhattan Power System (1882)
Manhattan Power System (1882)
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West Orange Laboratory
West Orange Laboratory
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Alkaline Storage Battery
Alkaline Storage Battery
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Edison's Patent Record
Edison's Patent Record
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Study Notes
- Thomas Elva Edison was born on February 11, 1847, in Milan, Ohio, US, and died on October 18, 1931, in West Orange, N.J.
- Edison was an American inventor with little formal schooling.
- At age 10, he set up a laboratory in his father’s basement.
- By age 12, Edison was earning money selling newspapers and candy on trains.
- From 1862 to 1868, he worked as a telegrapher.
- Edison decided to pursue invention and entrepreneurship after working as a telegrapher.
- He was motivated to overcome his partial deafness through his inventions.
- Edison developed a machine for Western Union that could send four telegraph messages down one wire.
- He sold the telegraph machine invention to Western Union’s rival, Jay Gould, for over $100,000.
- Edison created the world’s first industrial-research laboratory in Menlo Park, N.J.
- In 1877, he invented the carbon-button transmitter, which is still used in telephone speakers and microphones.
- Also in 1877, Edison invented the phonograph.
- In 1879, Edison invented the incandescent lightbulb.
- Financiers such as J.P. Morgan and the Vanderbilts advanced Edison $30,000 to develop the lightbulb.
- In 1882, he supervised the installation of the world’s first permanent commercial central power system in lower Manhattan.
- After his first wife's death in 1884, Edison built a new laboratory in West Orange, N.J.
- The first major project at the new laboratory was commercializing the phonograph.
- Alexander Graham Bell had improved on the phonograph since Edison’s initial invention.
- At the new laboratory, Edison and his team developed an early movie camera.
- They also developed an instrument for viewing moving pictures.
- Edison and his team also invented the alkaline storage battery.
- Edison continued to work even in his 80s, despite later projects being less successful than his earlier ones.
- Edison held a world-record 1,093 patents, singly or jointly.
- Nearly 400 of his patents were for electric light and power.
- Edison always invented for necessity, aiming to create something new that he could manufacture.
- He laid the basis for the technological revolution of the modern electric world.
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