Thomas
Alva Edison,(born February 11, 1847, Milan, Ohio, U.S.—died October 18, 1931,
West Orange, New Jersey), American inventor who, singly or jointly, held a
world record 1,093 patents. In addition, he created the world’s first
industrial research laboratory.
Edison
was the quintessential American inventor in the era of Yankee ingenuity. He
began his career in 1863, in the adolescence of the telegraph industry, when
virtually the only source of electricity was primitive batteries putting out a
low-voltage current. Before he died, in 1931, he had played a critical role in
introducing the modern age of electricity. From his laboratories and workshops
emanated the phonograph, the carbon-button transmitter for the telephone
speaker and microphone, the incandescent lamp, a revolutionary generator of
unprecedented efficiency, the first commercial electric light and power system,
an experimental electric railroad, and key elements of motion-picture
apparatus, as well as a host of other inventions.
Edison
was the seventh and last child—the fourth surviving—of Samuel Edison, Jr., and
Nancy Elliot Edison. At an early age he developed hearing problems, which have
been variously attributed but were most likely due to a familial tendency to
mastoiditis. Whatever the cause, Edison’s deafness strongly influenced his
behaviour and career, providing the motivation for many of his inventions
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