Thomas Edison Case

Hello my name is Thomas Alva Edison. I was born on February 11th, 1847. I was the last of seven children of Samuel and Nancy. My mother was an accomplished school teacher and was a huge influence to me. My mother was the making of me, she was so true, so sure of me, and I felt I had something to live for, someone I must not disappoint. I was quite a mischievous child when I was young. My mother pulled me out of school right away she heard I was a "distraction" to my teacher and home schooled me. When I was a child, I had an appetite for knowledge and books on a wide range of subjects. I even went as far as begging my parents to let me sell newspapers at a railroad. After succeeding, I secretly conducted chemical experiments on the train baggage car. But one time an accident occurred which set the car on fire. Even though bad events occurred, I happened to save a three year old from being run over by a runaway train. The father of that boy rewarded me by teaching me how to operate a telegraph. For several years I have been employed in jobs as an itinerant telegrapher. Then I returned to my family, only to find my dear mother mentally ill and my father out of work. This showed me I was in charge of my own life now. My first invention was the improved stock ticker in 1869. In the 1870's I invented the phonograph which gained me notice. The phonograph recorded sound on tin foil cylinders. In the 1880's I invented the light bulb which led to the creation of the Edison Illuminating Company, which would deliver electricity to light the cities of the world. My major innovation was the first industrial research lab, which was built in Menlo Park, New Jersey. In just over a decade, my laboratory had expanded to occupy two city blocks. In 1877-78, I invented and developed the carbon microphone used in all telephones until the 1980's. I did not invent the first electric light bulb, but instead invented the first commercially practical incandescent light. After many experiments with platinum and other metal filaments, I returned to a carbon filament for the light bulb. My first successful test of the light lasted 13.5 hours. I later discovered a carbonized bamboo filament that could last over 1200 hours. I am also credited with designing and producing the first commercially available fluoroscope, which is a machine that uses x-rays to take radiographs. I was also the first to use rotating film and the motion picture camera in order to create animated images known today as movies. The motion picture camera took a lot of frames per second used to film movies. During World War 2, the U.S. government asked me to examine inventions for military use. I worked on submarine detectors, but never invented weapons to kill. Finally, I died of diabetes complications on October 18th, 1931 at the age of 84 in my home in West Orange, New Jersey.

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