That's the history of innovation, no one EVER invents something in a vacuum, it is all based on someone else's work. Altair and many others tried to come up with computers that were functional personal computers, the Apple ][ was the first practical home computer system, thus Altair is forgotten and Apple is the largest technology company in the world. Same as the OTTO-cycle engine, many other engines were attempted but It was the first practical gas engine and thus Nikolas Otto gets the credit because his system worked. Bill
-- Bill Taney Sent From My iPad On Jul 4, 2011, at 2:17 PM, Steven Medved <steve_nor...@msn.com> wrote: > > However, his filament had low resistance, thus needing heavy copper wires to > supply it. Jim, You are an electrical engineer, how much copper would have > been necessary to provide a working low resistance lighting system for all of > England? My understanding is that to employ a low resistance series method > of electrical distribution would have used a tremendous amount of copper > therefore the Swan system could not have been used. If a system cannot be > used even if it works in a laboratory what good is it except for a curiosity? > Steve >> Date: Sun, 3 Jul 2011 21:29:26 -0400 >> From: bi...@ftldesign.com >> To: phono-l@oldcrank.org >> Subject: Re: [Phono-L] Dearborn trip--Edison's last breath >> >> On 7/3/2011 8:38 PM, Jim Nichol wrote: >>> I strongly disagree. Yes, Google will tell you that many others worked on >>> the light bulb. But those stories all conclude that none of them were >>> practical. Edison's contribution was not only that he invented the power >>> plant, but more importantly, he invented the first practical incandescent >>> bulb. >> >> The British would disagree: >> >> "In 1850 Swan began working on a light bulb using carbonized paper >> filaments in an evacuated glass bulb. By 1860 he was able to demonstrate >> a working device, and obtained a British patent covering a partial >> vacuum, carbon filament incandescent lamp. However, the lack of a good >> vacuum and an adequate electric source resulted in an inefficient bulb >> with a short lifetime. >> >> "Fifteen years later, in 1875, Swan returned to consider the problem of >> the light bulb with the aid of a better vacuum and a carbonized thread >> as a filament. The most significant feature of Swan's improved lamp was >> that there was little residual oxygen in the vacuum tube to ignite the >> filament, thus allowing the filament to glow almost white-hot without >> catching fire. However, his filament had low resistance, thus needing >> heavy copper wires to supply it.[7] >> >> "Swan received a British patent for his device in 1878, about a year >> before Thomas Edison. >> >> "In America, Edison had been working on copies of the original light >> bulb patented by Swan, trying to make them more efficient. Though Swan >> had beaten him to this goal, Edison obtained patents in America for a >> fairly direct copy of the Swan light, and started an advertising >> campaign which claimed that he was the real inventor. Swan, who was less >> interested in making money from the invention, agreed that Edison could >> sell the lights in America while he retained the rights in Britain." >> >> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_Swan >> >> -- >> Bill Burns >> Long Island NY USA >> http://ftldesign.com >> _______________________________________________ >> Phono-L mailing list >> http://phono-l.oldcrank.org > > _______________________________________________ > Phono-L mailing list > http://phono-l.oldcrank.org _______________________________________________ Phono-L mailing list http://phono-l.oldcrank.org
