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The invention of the incandescent light bulb was by the famous Thomas Edison in 1879, and he introduced the light bulb to the world in 1886. Also in 1886, he introduced a type of fluorescent bulb, but it was not a success and did not take hold with the public. Fifty tears later, on April 22, 1936, a man by the name of George Inman submitted the first patent. He led a group of General Electric scientists into researching an improved and practical fluorescent lamp and, according to the GE Fluorescent Lamp Pioneers, on Oct 14, 1941 the first patent was issued to George E. Inman (filing date was Apr 22, 1936). This has been regarded as the foundation patent for the fluorescent bulb even though there was another patent that was submitted before 1941 which some individuals had been working on one at the same time as GE. But GE is accepted as being the one who introduced the first fluorescent bulb
The fluorescent light bulb works on a very different principle than the incandescent light bulbs, which activate by using electricity and a filament. In the incandescent bulb, electricity produces heat on the filament inside the light bulb, and this exhibits a resistance that results in high temperatures. It is this burning filament that causes the glow and emits light.
Arc or vapor lamps (in fluorescent) work in a different way. The light is not created from heat. The light is a result of the chemical reactions that occur when electricity is applied to the different gases enclosed in a glass vacuum chamber. There is no heat created within the light bulb at all. This is one benefit of the fluorescent bulb. Another is that the bulb will last longer, and both of these reasons result in a lower energy bill for you.
The history of the fluorescent light bulb started years ago and continues to keep improving. Today you can also find fluorescent bulbs in the original tubes and also there are many other shapes to fit your needs, like circular or corkscrew.
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