Who invented the lightbulb?
If you answered Thomas Edison, guess again.
The lightbulb was invented by a man named Humphrey Davy. In 1806, Davy demonstrated his
invention (The Arc Lamp) to the Royal Society. This device required an obscene amount of
power, and the batteries which powered Davy's model were quickly drained.
As time passed, electric generators came along that could supply the appropriate amount of
power to the Arc Lamp. The most practical uses for the Arc Lamp were lighthouses, public
assembly areas and searchlights. The problem? They were simply too bright to be used in
residences and most businesses.
Throughout the 1800's, inventors strived to find a way to subdivide the light from Davy's Arc
Lamp so that it could be used in homes and offices. Many different inventors patented different
versions of bulbs, but none proved practical for everyday use.
In 1878, Thomas Edison began looking at existing patents and research in order to avoid the
mistakes made by his predecessors. He and his staff also began doing basic research on the
properties of the materials they had been working with. After several more years of trial and
error, the filament was fashioned in 1880 and the lightbulb as we know it, was born.
So did Thomas Edison invent the lightbulb? No. Others had produced an incandescent light
before him. He did, however, create the first PRACTICAL lightbulb, along with the electrical
system to support it, and it's for this reason that we remember Edison, and not those who
blazed the trail.
EDIT: I'm thinking we can somehow maybe incorporate some of this into the explanation of what Goldcoin is. We're not Bitcoin, but we'll be remembered years from now because we're more practical, accessible and relevant.
