Thomas Edison
The youngest of seven children, Thomas Edison did poorly in school because his mind wandered away from classroom lessons. With his mother as his teacher, Edison began to excel at learning. Untreated ear infections and a childhood bout with scarlet fever left him deaf. A youthful career as a newsboy demonstrated his ability as a budding businessman, but it was when he learned to become a telegraph operator that his life took shape. Of the 1,093 U.S. patents in Edison's name, many are improvements to the telegraph or are based on its technologies. From the phonograph to the light bulb, from electric power distribution to the fluoroscope (the machine which takes x-ray images), Edison was an inventor on a grand scale who applied the methods of mass production to the demands of invention. His ability to envision and design technologies which came to dominate everyday life brought him enduring success.
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