Haydee Ramirez
English 1101
Professor Harris
25 April 2020
Is
Thomas Edison responsible for the light bulb?
(One
example of Thomas Edison’s perfected lightbulb.)
Imagine living in the world without
light, other than the sun’s rays. The light we flicker on and off in our homes
came along way since the 1800s. We use the invention of lightbulbs constantly
during our lifetime, but have you ever wondered whose famous face hides behind
this life changing invention? The lightbulb idea had many takers and many
improvements added one after another. However, should we give the credit to
those who made it happen or the one with the bright idea? When it is broken
down, Thomas Edison invented the infamous lightbulb. Another question that is
popular is as follows…what should be taken into consideration whether someone
should be credited for the discovery of an idea or the invention of the idea?
Innovations from previous lightbulb inventions/ideas, accessibility to more
money for better supply, help from a team of experts; are all key factors
whether the inventors really deserve recognition. With the help of scientists,
theorists, articles, and textbooks we can gather information from all the
inventors who helped produce the final product. Inventors like Joseph Wilson
Swan, Henry Woodward, and Mathew Evans helped make major contributions to the
lightbulb invention. Because of all these attributes, Thomas Edison invented
the light bulb as he improved and commercialized the technology. After all, the
rule of thumb is that discoveries apply to things that have long existed, while
inventions – to things that have never existed in the past.
One
crucial understanding is that without the fundamentals of the previous
lightbulbs, Thomas Edison possibly would not have been successful with his
patent. As we look way back, there were infamous scientists that worked on
having a successful light bulb, but each came with an issue. For example, in
1879, Italian inventor Alessandro Volta developed the first practical method of
generating electricity, the voltaic pile (“Who Invented the Light Bulb?” LiveScience.) This served as one of the
earliest manifestations of the incandescent lighting. Shortly after Vola’s
discovery, English chemist and inventor, Humphry Davy produced the world’s
first electric lamp. Humphry Davy’s arc lamp was just a closer improvement to
Volta’s discovery. However, Davy’s lamp was said to burn out to quickly and too
bright for home living and work. After this, the 1800’s boomed with a
development of many other electric lamps and bulbs. There was a British
scientist named Warren de la Rue, whom designed a lightbulb using coiled
platinum filament, but failed because it was too expensive to commercialize.
Similarly, English man William Staite’s lamps failed because the batteries used
to power them were also too expensive. Soon came the 1850’s, English chemist
Joseph Swan, who tackled the cost-effectiveness problems from previous
inventors. His idea was to replace platinum filaments with carbonized
filaments. While his prototype invention was a success, it was impractical in
usage. Finally, Thomas Edison realized Swan’s problem. Thomas Edison figured
that a thin filament with a high electrical resistance would make a lamp
practical because it would require only a little current to make it glow. With
this discovery, Swan improved his lamps and founded an electrical company.
Thomas Edison sued for patent infringement (“Do You Know Who Really Invented
the Light Bulb?”) The two soon joined forces and created the Edison-Swan
united, which served as the world’s largest manufacturers of lightbulbs. Behind
their success, two inventors Henry Woodward and Mathew Evans also had a patent,
but failed to commercialize their lamps, having to sell their patents to Thomas
Edison (“History of the Light Bulb: Lighting Basics.” Bulbs.com.) When Thomas
started to design the lightbulb, he was far from the first person to try. Instead,
he was the first to commercialize a lightbulb that was effective.
One advantage Edison had compared
to the other inventors, was his wealth. He had already had previous inventions
made before this incandescent, electric light. Edison’s wealth came from the
infamous telegraph and the tin foil phonograph. This placed Edison at a higher
advantage because there were no issues gaining expensive supplies, with a great
quantity and quality. Warren de la rue, could not further his invention because
the cost of platinum was too high to commercialize. Has he had the money Thomas
Edison had, he could have had success? William Staite invention could not
surpass because the cost of the batteries used to power them reduced the budget
for his commercial projects. Thomas Edison had all the money, to gain all the
supplies, the workers, the labs, and researchers he needed. It had cost $40,000
(about $850,000 in today's money.)
Another advantage Edison Had was his vast
team of researches and high-tech equipment in his fancy lab. He was one of the
first inventors to apply the principles of organized science and teamwork to
the process of invention, working with many researchers and employees. Edison
and his team of researchers in Menlo Park, N.J., where the lab was located,
tested more than 3,000 designs for bulbs between 1878 and 1880.William Joseph
Hammer, a consulting electrical engineer, started working for Edison and began
his duties as a laboratory assistant in December 1879.Unlike other
inventors who had no accessibility to scientist and researchers working
endlessly, their inventions were done single handily, which resulted in too
much time consumption and less ideas. Edison was the only lightbulb inventor
who had access to such an expensive team.
On the contrary, many believe that
Edison’s unfair advantages gave him more likelihood to produce a successful
lightbulb. If other inventors had the same access to all of Edison’s, they too could’ve
been successful. Also, those believe that said person who came up with the idea
simply deserves all the credit to the invention. Those who oppose, say that
said person to have a working invention, is whom deserves the recognition. When
all is said and done… Thomas Edison used his attributes and it benefited him to
success. Thomas Edison was a very intelligent man, who self-made all his
inventions. Edison's bulb was more successful because he created a complete
vacuum inside the bulb, and he used a better filament.
Unluckily, recognition for major inventions
is not negotiated by historians: it matters upon markets, circumstance, and
popularity, potencies not bound by precision. If people attempted to make the
incandescent light bulb function, who deserves the credit? Should they be
credited for the idea itself? Have a model? Would it matter how long the model stay
alight? How bright it burned? In conclusion, Thomas Edison deserves his easy
recognition for his invention. He demonstrated merit to earn his way up to have
accessibility to anything he desires. With the use of smart tactics, he
accomplished his invention. None of which would’ve been possible without his
efforts and previous success from previous inventions.
Work Cited
Palermo, Elizabeth. “Who
Invented the Light Bulb?” LiveScience, Purch, 17 Aug. 2017,www.livescience.com/43424-who-invented-the-light-bulb.html.
“Do You Know Who Really
Invented the Light Bulb?” Awesome Image, 20 Apr.20 ,www.blueappleelectric.com/do-you-know-who-really-invented-the-light-bulb/.
Many Minds Produced The
Light That Illuminated America.” US News & World Report, 27 Jan. 2020.https://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2013/03/21/why-thomas-edison-isnt-the-inventor-of-the-light-bulb.
“Thomas Edison Did Not Invent The Light Bulb.”
Ripley’s Believe It or Not!, 19 Apr. 2018, https://www.ripleys.com/weird-news/or-not-thomas-edison-light-bulb/.
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