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Edison invented the lightbulb? I thought it was Humphrey Davy or maybe Warren de la Rue.

• logfromblammo 11y ago
  Also, Joseph Swan and Charles Stearn were the first to bring a practical commercial application to the market. Edison, if I recall correctly, invented the screw-in electrical connector, the permanently sealed bulb, and a certain type of carbon filament. That's why when Edison refused to license his patents to Westinghouse for the 1893 World's Fair in Chicago, the lights were stoppered instead of permanently sealed, with dual bayonet bases. They burnt out constantly, and that resulted in the contract being underbid, but the power to the fair was Westinghouse alternating current rather than Edison direct current, so it was a minor victory in the current war. No, Edison did not invent the light bulb. But of all the people who contributed innovations to it, he was probably the best at manipulating public perceptions.
  • Aloha 11y ago
    I'd actually argue that Edison made the first /practical electric light bulb for use in a lighting system/ Swans lamp was a low resistance lamp, meaning higher current demand and a need for larger copper supply lines to supply the lamp.