Thomas+Alva+Edison


 * Introduction**

"Genius is one percen t inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration." – Thomas Alva Edison (Anderson). Thoma Alva Edison was the greatest innovator of all time. He had an overwhelming total of 1,093 patents under his name, achieving a world record for creating the most inventions in the United States (D' Amico). With only three months of schooling up until age twelve, Edison's intellectual mind enabled him to be inquisitive (Daniels). Best known for his inventions of the light bulb and the phonograph, Edison was able to pav e the way to his popularity (Anderson). Not only that, but he is highly considered to be one of the most influential person in today's history because he brought a change to many people's lives with his many inventions (Anderson).


 * Personal Backgrou**** nd **

The great inventor, Thomas Alva Edison, was born on February 11, 1847 in Milan, Ohio (Walsh). Thomas Alva Edison was the seventh and last child born in his family (Daniels). He went to school up until the age of twelve and had only three months of formal education (Anderson). After that, he was primarily self-taught by himself and was educated b y his mother, Nancy Edison for some time (D'Amico). In 1859, Thomas Alva Edison was thirteen and he received his first job as a newsboy, selling newspapers to passengers on the Grand Trunk Railroad (The Life of Thomas Edison).

By the age of sixteen, Edison became a telegrapher in 1863 and traveled around the United States to look for available telegraph occupations (Bellis). Edison worked at the Western Union which was the largest telegraph company in the nation. He wised to become an inventor and manufacturer, so he quit his job as a telegrapher and moved to New York City to pursue his ambitions (Daniels). His very first patent was an electric vote recorder that was intended to enhance voting progress (Bellis). Unfortunately, his first invention became unsuccessful due to politicians' reluctance to use it (The Life of Thomas Edison). After Edison's disappointed failure, he decided that he would only invent t hings that would be necessary to the world (Anderson).

Edison married twice in his life (Daniels). He married Mary Stilwell on Christmas in 1871 and had three children later on (The Life of Thomas Edison). They moved to Menlo Park and Edison created a new laboratory where the inventions and experiments would be done (Anderson). On August 1884, Edison's wife died from a brain tumor and he remarried again in 1886 to Mina Miller (Daniels). When the United States was involved in World War I, Edison was appointed to head the Naval Consulting Board (Walsh). He spent much of his time doing naval research (The Life of Thomas Edison). Edison suffered from many ailments when he aged past eighty years old (D'Amico). His last experiment was for his close friend, Henry Ford and Harvey Firestone, in which he would find another source of rubber (Anderson). On October 18, 1931, Thomas Alva Edison died at his home, Glenmont in West Orange, New Jersey (Walsh).
 * Personality Traits **

Thomas Alva Edison was a famous inventor who was constantly eager to experiment ever since he was a child (Bellis). He always enjoyed making new discoveries in life and was always inquisitive about the world that evolved around him (Daniels). Edison's curiosity made him get into trouble at many times (Anderson). When he was younger, Edison igni ted a fire just to discover what would happen, and as a result, he got punished by his father, Samuel Edison (Anderson). Edison's curiosity allowed him to acknowledge the small,unnoticed details in life. Although his curiosity may have gone out of control at some points, Edison was a very intelligent person (Bellis).

He was a self-learner and was always a hardworking individual who put in great effort into whatever task he was working on (D' Amico). Edison liked to solve problems and did not approve of giving up (Daniels). He was a talented man who was able to invent numerous inventions. Despite the failures Edison had, he never slowed down at his work and always anticipated the future. Edison stated, "I have not failed; I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work" (Anderson). His positive mentality helped encourage him what direction to move in (D' Amico).

Edison enjoyed being around his workers side by side creating new inventions together (Bellis). Whenever new ideas were suggested, he was enthusiastic about them (Daniels). He liked working long hours and was persistent on his job (D' Amico). Edison aided his friends when they needed or requested help (Bellis). Thomas Alva Edison was an inspiring man who had been a role model to many people.


 * Obstacles**

Although Thomas Edison was a famous inventor who invented many inventions, he had obstacles he had to encounter and overcome. Like many other people, he faced many difficult challenges during his lifetime. When Edison was a child, his family was poor and he had poor health conditions. He developed scarlet fever when he was younger, whi ch later resulted him having hearing problems (Daniels). It affected him greatly at a young age and it was the main reason why Edison had hearing loss. He had only three months of formal schooling (D' A mico). There were times where his parents did not want Edison to continue with his experiments because Edison's curiosity got him in to trouble (Belli s). In 1863, Edison traveled around many places, looking for available telegraph jobs in the United States. He abandoned his job and decided to become an inventor. In 1868, Edison's first patent was an automatic vote recorder. It was not a success and he decided to never invent something that people would not use (Daniels). His most difficult project was the alkaline battery. He spent ten years to develop the alkaline battery (Bellis). Edison married twice in his life. He was devastated when his first wife, Mary Stilwell died (Daniels). By the time Edison was eighty-two years old, he had suffered from ailments (Anderson).


 * Historical Significance**

Thomas Alva Edison was an inventor who had contributed to the world of technology. He was an individual who had invented more than a thousand inventions. Many know him as the person who invented the light bulb. However, he was more than the inventor of the incandescent light bulb. He invented many other useful inventions that people have not heard of because it was not well known. His inventions have made life easier, and it has helped a myriad of people (Bellis).

Edison had a plethora of inventions. He kept inventing, even when his inventions resulted in a failure. The inventions that were the most popular were the light bulb, phonograph and the first motion picture camera (Daniels). Edison invented the electric light bulb in 1879. He was able to make the light bulb last longer and had improved the lasting of the bulb. Edison was able to make the light bulb last longer for thirteen and a half hour (Anderson).

The phonograph was invented in 1877 and the first motion picture camera, or the Kinetograph was made in 1891. Thomas Edison had many other inventions that were not as popular. Other inventions that he patented included the electric vote recorder and the alkaline battery (Bellis). The alkaline battery was for cars because he thought that cars would run on electricity later in the future. He also invented the stock ticker, which was used to determine the changes on prices. His inventions helped improve the lives of the people (Anderson). Edison had earned world recognition and received many honorable mentions. He was awarded with the Edward Longstreth Medal of the Franklin Institute during the year 1899. Thomas Alva Edison was the head of the Naval Consulting board in 1915. He earned an award called the Congressional Gold Medal in 1928 (Daniels). Edison has been a historical sig nificance because his inventions had changed the world. Thomas Alva Edison helped influence people with his invention. As a tribute, his birthday is celebrated as National Inventor's Day on February 11 (Walsh).


 * References**

Anderson, Amy. "Profiles in Greatness: Thomas Edison." Success. 2 Aug. 2009. Success. Web. 8 Dec. 2014 **SE#6**

Bellis, Mary. "Biography of Thomas Edison: Early Life." Inventors 2004. About.com. Web. 5 Nov. 2014. **SE#4**

Bellis, Mary. "The Life of Thomas Edison: Family Background, Early Years, First Jobs." Inventors 2004. About.com. Web. 15 Oct. 2014. **SE#3**

D'Amico, Esther. "'Invention factory' revisited. (Thomas Edison's laboratories, West Orange, NJ)." Chemical Week 158. (1996):56(1). eLibrary. Web. 16 Sep. 2014. **SE#1**

Daniels, Patricia. "Thomas Edison: One of the world's most famous inventors." About 2005. About.com. Web. 01 Oct. 2014. **SE#2**

Walsh, Bryan. "The Electrifying Edison." Time. 23 June. 2010. Time. Web. 19 Nov. 2014. **SE#5**