Who was Thomas Alva Edison? He was an American inventor and innovator, who held over a thousand patents for gadgets and life-improving inventions. These included the electric lightbulb, the phonograph, and a large number of improvements to the telegraph.

In this video, we trace the story of Edison's life, from his humble beginnings as a poor home-schooled child with hearing loss, to his entrepreneurial adolescence, to his almost unbelievable success as an researcher, engineer, innovator, and inventor.

We would like to thank our Patrons on Patreon for their generous support of Socratica. They help us make these videos possible! Our sincere gratitude goes out to Tracy Karin Prell, Vishal Shah, Carlos Araujo, Markie Waid, Martin Stephens, Andrew Mengede, Juan Guillermo Henao, and Birds Eat Bees.

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More Biographies of Great Thinkers:
Socrates http://bit.ly/2GRmJYR
Plato http://bit.ly/2F57wTw
Aristotle http://bit.ly/2F2iWeK
Eratosthenes http://bit.ly/2oz0UXk
Euclid http://bit.ly/2oxZ9cZ
Galois http://bit.ly/2t5N8QI
Pierre de Fermat http://bit.ly/2F26g3G
Edward Jenner http://bit.ly/2FH41nw
Louis Pasteur http://bit.ly/2F2Yqek
Frederick Sanger http://bit.ly/2HUh5Xd
Santiago Ramon y Cajal http://bit.ly/2FF2Q84

As Isaac Newton said, "If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." Our "Great Thinkers" playlist celebrates influential thinkers who have changed the world for the better.
You can see our entire "Great Thinkers" Biography series here:
http://bit.ly/2GSu8qQ

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We recommend:

Empires of Light: Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and the Race to Electrify the World
http://amzn.to/2CP7xJr

Asimov’s Chronology of Science and Discovery - you can read it cover to cover, or just dip in randomly.
http://amzn.to/2F0Kwcp

Vintage Style Edison Light Bulbs
http://amzn.to/2GSuiyq

Vintage Style Table Lamp - use with Edison Bulb
http://amzn.to/2HSkRAq

Shop Amazon Used Textbooks - Save up to 90%
http://amzn.to/2pllk4B

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Host: Liliana De Castro
Written and Produced by Kimberly Hatch Harrison

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Creative Commons Picture Credits:
Western Union Telegram
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:19...
AuthorL NatalieMaynor

Edison Stock Ticker
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ed...
Author: H. Zimmer

Edison's bulb used in Menlo Park demonstration
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ed...
Quthor: Alkivar

Edison Wax Cylinder Phonograph
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ed...
Author: Norman Bruderhofer

World's Columbian Exposition 1893
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ag...
Author: The Field Museum Library/ FlickrCommons

Steam Train Adventures
   • Steam Train Adventures 1992, CNW 4-6-...  
Author: Walt Loevy