In the very first strike, when we see an electric bulb, the first name that comes in our mind is none other than Thomas Edison. Today, its his 164th birthday, so this regard lets have a look on some inventions and events in the of

Thomas Alva Edison

1847 Born on February 11th at Milan, Ohio.

1854 Moved to Port Huron, Mich.

1857 Set up a chemical laboratory in the cellar of his home.

1859 Became a newsboy and "candy butcher" on the trains of the Grand Trunk Railway, running between Port Huron and Detroit.

1862 Printed and published "The Weekly Herald," the first newspaper ever to be typeset and printed on a moving train. The London Times features a story on him and his paper, giving him his first exposure to international notoriety.

1862 Saved - from otherwise certain death in a train accident - the young son of J. U. Mackenzie, station agent at Mount Clemens, Mich. In gratitude, the child's father taught him telegraphy.

1862 Strung a telegraph line from the Port Huron railway station to Port Huron village and worked in the local telegraph office.

1863 Obtained his first position as a regular telegraph operator on the Grand Trunk Railway at Stratford Junction, Canada. Later, is resigned by them to help develop a duplex system of telegraphy

1863-1868 Spent nearly five years as a telegraph "tramp operator" in various cities of the Central Western states, always experimenting with ways to improve the apparatus.

1868 Entered the office of Western Union in Boston as a telegraph operator. Becomes friendly with other early electricians - especially a later associate of Alexander Graham Bell named Benjamin Franklin Bredding - who was much more knowledgeable than both himself and Bell on the state-of-the-art of telegraphy and electricity. Entered the private telegraph line business on a very modest scale. Resigned from Western Union - was about to be fired anyway - in order to conduct further experimentation on multiplexing telegraph signals.

1868 Came up with his first patented invention, an Electrical Vote Recorder. Application for this patent was signed 0n October 11, 1968. Because the invention was way ahead of its time, it was heartily denigrated by politicians...  He now becomes much more oriented towards making certain there is a strong public demand and associated market for anything he tries to invent.

1869 Went into partnership with Franklin L. Pope as an electrical engineer. Radically improved stock tickers and patented several associated inventions, among which were the Universal Stock Ticker and the Unison Device.

1870 Received the first cash payment for one of his inventions, a $40,000 check. Sent money back to his financially desperate parents. Opened a manufacturing shop in Newark, where he made stock tickers and worked on developing the quadruplex telegraph.

1871 Assisted Sholes, the inventor of the typewriter, in making the first successful working model of that device.

1872-1876 Worked on and patented several of his most important inventions, including the motograph and automatic telegraph systems such as the quadruplex, sextuplex and multiplex telegraph which saved Western Union many millions of dollars in wiring. Also invented paraffin paper (which was first used for wrapping candies), the electric pen, the forerunner of the present day mimeograph machine, the carbon rheostat, the microtasimeter, etc.

1876-1877 Invented the carbon telephone transmitter "button", which finally made telephony a commercial success. Significantly, this invention not only led to the development of the microphone, which made early radio possible, but the solid state "diode" or transistor which makes so many of today's electronic devices possible. Invented the phonograph. (The patent on which was later issued by the United States Patent Office - within two months after its application - without a single reference.)

1878 Continued to improve the phonograph. Later in the year, went with an astronomical party to Rawlins, Wyoming for rest and to test his new microtasimeter during an eclipse of the sun. Associates key him in to the world-wide need for a workable incandescent light bulb. Upon returning, he began to investigate the "electric light problem in earnest."

1879 Invented the first commercially practical incandescent electric lamp. The lamp itself was perfected on October 21st, 1879, on which day there was put into circuit the first bulb embodying the principles known as the "Edison modern incandescent lamp." This bulb maintained its incandescence for over 40 hours.

1880 Invented further improvements in systems and details for electric lighting and laid the first groundwork for introducing them on a commercial basis. Established the first incandescent lamp factory at Menlo Park, N. J.

1880 Invented a magnetic ore separator. Invented and installed the first life-sized electric railway for handling freight and passengers at Menlo Park, N. J.

1883 Constructed the first, relatively crude, three-wire central system for electric lighting in a simple wooden structure in Sunbury, Pa.

1887 Moved his center of experimentation to the laboratory at West Orange, New Jersey.

1891 Made a number of inventions associated with improving electric railways.

1891 Invented and patented the motion picture camera. This mechanism, with its continuous tape-like film, made it possible to take, reproduce, and project motion pictures as we see and hear them today.

1900 - 1910 Invented and perfected the steel alkaline storage battery and made it a commercial success.

1902-1903 Worked on improving the Edison Primary Battery. Continued to invent improvements to his phonograph - his favorite invention - and associated cylinders.

1917-1918 Worked on special experiments relating to defense for the United States Government. See below.

I Locating positions of guns by sound ranging.

2 Detecting submarines by sound from moving vessels.

3 Detecting, on moving vessels, the discharge of torpedoes by submarines.

4 The faster turning of ships.

5 Strategic plans for saving cargo boats from harm by enemy submarines.

6 Development of collision mats for submarines and ships.

7 Methods for guiding merchant ships out of mined harbors.

8 Oleum cloud shells.

9 Camouflaging ships.

10 Blocking torpedoes with nets.

11 Increased power for torpedoes.

12 Coastal patrol by submarine buoys.

13 Destroying periscopes with machine guns.

14 Cartridges for taking soundings.

15 Sailing lights for convoys.

16 Smudging skyline.

1 17 Underwater searchlights.

18 High speed signaling with searchlights.

19 Water penetrating projectiles.

20 Airplane detection.

21 Observing periscopes in silhouette.

Edison was awarded 1,368 separate and distinct patents during his lifetime. He passed away at age 84 on October 18th, 1931 - on the anniversary date of his invention of the incandescent bulb

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