- Pipkin’s light bulb moment (spark.iop.org)
Early electric light bulbs gave off a harsh, glaring light. So, as a new recruit to General Electric in 1919, Marvin Pipkin had the brilliant idea to make bulbs with a frosted inner surface to give a gentler glow. His managers smiled indulgently and asked the eager young chemist to work on solving the problem.
It is the perfection of God’s works that they are all done with the greatest simplicity. He is the God of order and not of confusion. And therefore as they would understand the frame of the world must endeavor to reduce their knowledge to all possible simplicity, so must it be in seeking to understand these visions.
Isaac Newton
- Incandescent light bulb (Wikipedia)
An incandescent light bulb, incandescent lamp or incandescent light globe is an electric light with a filament that is heated until it glows. The filament is enclosed in a glass bulb that is either evacuated or filled with inert gas to protect the filament from oxidation. Electric current is supplied to the filament by terminals or wires embedded in the glass. A bulb socket provides mechanical support and electrical connections.