what did Thomas Edison do to make a historical differnce in life?
609966
Could it be that he invented the lightbulb? And a bunch of other stuff as well.
136102
Thomas A. Edison's forebears lived in New Jersey until their loyalty to the British crown during the American Revolution drove them to Nova Scotia, Canada. From there, later generations relocated to Ontario and fought the Americans in the War of 1812. Edison's mother, Nancy Elliott, was originally from New York until her family moved to Vienna, Canada, where she met Sam Edison, Jr., whom she later married. When Sam became involved in an unsuccessful insurrection in Ontario in the 1830s, he was forced to flee to the United States and in 1839 they made their home in Milan, Ohio.\n\nThomas Alva Edison was born to Sam and Nancy on February 11, 1847, in Milan, Ohio. Known as "Al" in his youth, Edison was the youngest of seven children, four of whom survived to adulthood. Edison tended to be in poor health when young.\n\nTo seek a better fortune, Sam Edison moved the family to Port Huron, Michigan, in 1854, where he worked in the lumber business.\n\nEdison was a poor student. When a schoolmaster called Edison "addled," his furious mother took him out of the school and proceeded to teach him at home. Edison said many years later, "My mother was the making of me. She was so true, so sure of me, and I felt I had some one to live for, some one I must not disappoint."(1) At an early age, he showed a fascination for mechanical things and for chemical experiments.\n\nIn 1859, Edison took a job selling newspapers and candy on the Grand Trunk Railroad to Detroit. In the baggage car, he set up a laboratory for his chemistry experiments and a printing press, where he started the Grand Trunk Herald, the first newspaper published on a train. An accidental fire forced him to stop his experiments on board.\n\nAround the age of twelve, Edison lost almost all his hearing. There are several theories as to what caused his hearing loss. Some attribute it to the aftereffects of scarlet fever which he had as a child. Others blame it on a conductor boxing his ears after Edison caused a fire in the baggage car, an incident which Edison claimed never happened. Edison himself blamed it on an incident in which he was grabbed by his ears and lifted to a train. He did not let his disability discourage him, however, and often treated it as an asset, since it made it easier for him to concentrate on his experiments and research. Undoubtedly, though, his deafness made him more solitary and shy in dealings with others.
104502
Check out the book "A Thomas Jefferson Education."  You can find it at www.gwc.edu in the bookstore section. It is a must read!
920191
I think that history plays a major role in our lives. How would we know anything or be able to do anthing without knowing what happened in the past first?
496409
I would suggest a trip to the library. Look for books on inventors. Also, meet the person sitting behind the desk that says, "reference". You are why they live.
447938
Nikola Tesla was a great Genius . He was responsible for Developing the alternating currents system which was adopted by Westinghouse.He Invented many electrical and magnetic devices including the induction motor.
486729
You need to be more specific.\nThomas Edison phonograph >evolved into 78rpm recordings > 33 1/3 rpms > 45 rpms > 8 track tapes > cassettes > Cd's > DVDs > MP3s > ipods, etc. \nAutos? Check out "Fast Food Nation" ( forgot author). The story of how each affected the other. \nNuclear power after steam boats.   \nThe Wright brothers to satellites. Specifics. The internet is a fascinating topic in itself. We have more info on our desk top than Henry Ford had in his life time. We can talk to, or see more people in one day than many did in their lives. Think specific questions.
384187
the kiss by Thomas Edison, i think
577496
he was born and he died...\n\nthey were pretty important events in his life...
1060183
Edison invented the light bulb. It was a bit of inspirational genius that took many tries before he got it right. The idea was good but putting in all the effort to make the idea work was how the inspiration became genius.
241642
The 29 room home was named Glenmont.  \n\n    Edison's second Wife (then 20 year old Mina Miller [b Jul 6, 1865 - d Aug 24, 1947) wanted a home in the country, so Edison bought Glenmont [as a wedding gift, just before their marriage in Feb 1886], a 29-room home with 13-1/2 acres of land in West Orange, New Jersey. \n\n    It was built in 1880 in the city of Llewellyn Park, NJ. It was 1/2 mile from the West Orange lab complex. The 29-room Queen Anne-style mansion contains the original items used by Thomas and Mina Edison, their family, and their servants.\n\n     Edison died in 1931 at his New Jersey estate, Glenmont. To honor Edison, people across the nation dimmed their light bulbs for one minute on the day of his funeral.\n\n     Edison [b. Feb 11, 1847 in Milan, Ohio - d. Oct 21, 1931 at his Glenmont estate] is buried next to his second wife Mina on the grounds of his last home, Glenmont, located in West Orange, New Jersey. They were moved there in 1963 from their original plots in Rosedale Cemetery in West Orange. The first Mrs. Edison, Mary Stillwell, is buried, along with two of her children Thomas Alva Jr. and Marion in Fairmont Cemetery located in Newark, New Jersey.\n\n\n    Edison himself was known as the wizard of Menlo Park.  His contributions to technology benefited people world-wide, and in 1878, he was named Chevalier of the Legion of Honor of France, and in 1889 was made a Commander in the Legion of Honor.   [He's the most prolific inventor in US History.  He had 1,093 patents - including the incandescent light bulb, the now standard US houshold electrical distribution system, the record-player, the dictaphone [a type of early tape recorder], the tattoo gun, an improved stock-ticker, the now standard research & development lab, the first movie-theater, a more efficient form of factory production that Henry Ford (an employee at Edison's lab) later used to mass-produce and distribute cars;   Edison worked with George Eastman to make film strips. Eastman went on to be a partner in a company named Kodak. ]  The town that Edison's Lab was in, [the world's first Research & Development Lab] is now named Edison, NJ. There is a Thomas Edison State College in NJ as well as a Thomas Alva Edison Memorial Tower and Museum in the town of Edison.  The City Hotel, in Sunbury, Pennsylvania, was the first building to be lit with Edison's three-wire system. The hotel was renamed The Hotel Edison, and retains that name today.  Life magazine, in a special double issue, placed Edison first in the "100 Most Important People in the Last 1000 Years", noting that his light bulb "lit up the world".\n\n  You can visit the historic site of Glenmont (at Main St & LakeSide Av in West Orange NJ 07052 [about 45 min from the George Washington Bridge] open 9A-5P; tours from 11A-4P Wed-Sun; Over 65 & under 17 have free tour; those from 17-65 $2 tour; the lab is handicap accessible; 973-736 0550 )\n\n   Edison saved everything. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, Edison's business and Edison's descendents donated his belongings to the Edison National Historic Site. The museum collections show Thomas Alva Edison's sixty-year career as inventor, manufacturer, businessman and private citizen. All his inventions are here, including the first phonograph. The Site is about 15 miles west of New York City, N.Y. The address is: Edison National Historic Site Main Street and Lakeside Avenue West Orange, NJ 07052\n\n    The size of the collection is shocking: 400,000 museum pieces! The writing documents (laboratory notebooks, sketches and working drawings) made by Edison and his colleagues are around five million!! \n\n    You can also see a replica of the world's first building used as a movie theater. Edison called this motion picture studio the "Black Maria", because it was made with black paper.   \n\n\nSee:\nhttp://www.ettc.net/njarts/details.cfm?ID=254\nhttp://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/ah_
814832
His name was Alessandro Volta.  Alessandro Volta discovered the first practical method of generating electricity.  In 1800, he arranged zinc and copper discs in a column and invented the battery.  His most famous invention was the voltic pile. \n\nThese links should give you all the good stuff!
320102
Well,...\n   First, write down the important topics if you see or hear one. the write down the MAIN and IMPORTANT details. Don't write down details that you think are not important!\nExample:\n   Inventions in the 1800's\n      Blue Jeans \n       (Inventors name here)\n         (Date invented here)\n      The Washing Machine\n        (Inventors name name here)\n          1858  \n\nYou get the picture! \n  If you still want more info,...\n    Go to Barn and nobles and get a book about taking notes or "How to survive school!", or something like that! \n\n   GOOD LUCK!
183980
He was a Serbian-American inventor, physicist, mechanical engineer and electrical engineer. Tesla is recognized among the most accomplished scientists of the late 19th and early 20th century. His patents and theoretical work form the basis of modern alternating current electric power (AC) systems, including the polyphase power distribution system and AC motor, with which he helped usher in the Second Industrial Revolution.
51997
You need to introduce your son to Wikipedia, a user-contributed encyclopedia of sorts.  Here's their page on Edison.
884820
he changed everything!!!......\nmusic,fashion,culture,dancing,television and even race relations...........
473381
Designer, inventor and innovator Nikola Tesla.