Thomas Alva Edison was an American inventor, known for inventing the light bulb in 1879.
Biography[]
Early life[]
Thomas Alva Edison was born in Ohio in 1847. Edison was one of the most prolific inventive geniuses in history and one of the central figures in the technological progress of his times. He hold 1,093 patents including the invention of the incandescent lamp[1] (invented in 1879),[2] the phonograph,[3] (announced in 1877)[4] the kinetoscope,[3] the carbon telephone transmitter, and the motion picture projector.[1]
He created the world's first industrial research laboratory, first at Menlo Park and then at West Orange, New Jersey. His laboratory and factory was a trial and error operation which aimed to produce products that would increase the convenience and pleasure of the multitudes. It produced mimeograph machines, the fluoroscope, the alkaline storage battery[1] (developted in 1901),[5] the dictating machine and many other practical inventions.[1] In 1878, he made long-distance telephone communications feasible.[2]
By 1916, Henry Ford believed in the Edison electric battery enough to pay for the research.[3]
Meet Indiana Jones[]
Indiana Jones met Thomas Alva Edison in 1916, while uncovering a plot by Professor John Thompson to steal some of Edison's innovative designs.[3] Indy knew about him before their encounter,[6] as when he was in Paris and had planned to meet up with a friend to explore Paris,[7][8] Miss Seymour made him read up on Thomas Edison instead.[7]
In return for saving his plans, Edison allowed Jones to use a prototype car to take his date Nancy Stratemeyer to a Spring high school prom dance.[3]
Later life and death[]
Edison worked until his death in 1931 at 84.[1]
Legacy[]
In 1930,[9] years after meeting the real Thomas Alva Edison,[3] Indiana Jones remarked that when people asked about the history of electrical power, names like Edison and Nikola Tesla came up and mentioned it had only been thirty years since Edison produced a worthwhile light bulb.[9]
The Edison Laboratory eventually became a national historic site.[1]
Personality and traits[]
Thomas Alva Edison called himself a commercial inventor and never claimed to be a scientist.[1] According to contemporanies like Indiana Jones, scientists like Thomas Edison made their most important discoveries when they just kept an open mind, when they were willing to be surprised.[6]
Appearances[]
- Young Indiana Jones and the Pirates' Loot (Mentioned only)
- The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles – "Princeton, February 1916" → Spring Break Adventure
- Race to Danger
- Indiana Jones and the White Witch (Mentioned only)
Sources[]
- The World of Indiana Jones
Chapter 6: Spring Break Adventure on IndianaJones.com (backup link on Archive.org)
Chapter 6: Springbreak Adventure on IndianaJones.com (backup link on Archive.org)- The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones Media Kit
- Interactive Timeline
- Thomas Edison - Lighting Up the World (Non-fiction source)
- The Mystery of Edward Stratemeyer (Non-fiction source)
- The Promise of Progress (Non-fiction source)
Notes and references[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Chapter 6: Spring Break Adventure on IndianaJones.com (backup link on Archive.org)
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The World of Indiana Jones
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles – "Princeton, February 1916" → Spring Break Adventure
- ↑ Thomas Edison - Lighting Up the World
- ↑ Interactive Timeline
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Young Indiana Jones and the Pirates' Loot
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 Race to Danger
- ↑ The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles – "Paris, September 1908" → Passion for Life
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Indiana Jones and the White Witch
