Inventing the Lightbulb – How Fishing Inspired Edison

February 05, 2025  •  EPISODE 251

Did you know Thomas Edison didn’t just invent the light bulb? He also fished for ideas! Listen as Roger Billings shares how a fishing trip led to one of the greatest inventions of all time.

About DrB

Dr. Roger Billings is a visionary innovator whose work has touched the lives of millions of students and transformed the landscape of education. Widely known as “DrB” to the countless kids who benefit from his groundbreaking Acellus learning system, Dr. Billings has dedicated his life to advancing education through technology. As part of DrB’s lifelong commitment to supporting education, Science LIVE was launched as a way to “give back” by mentoring students in conjunction with the Roger Billings Scholarship Program.


Read more about DrB » 
About the Roger Billings Scholarship Program »

Follow

423 Comments

  1. Mathani

    The history and creation of lightbulbs is fascinating.

    Reply
  2. Aiden

    What an incredible science live thank you!

    Reply
  3. Brooklyn

    The science and history behind light bulbs are so cool

    Reply
  4. Vanessa

    Amazing how we went to space in the 1960s.

    Reply
  5. Rebecca

    I like having a lightbulbs to see in the dark🥰💡💡💡☀️☀️☀️☀️

    Reply
  6. Cainan

    Wow that’s awesome that he was inspired by fishing, something new that I learned that’s cool.

    Reply
  7. Simone

    ❤️❤️

    Reply
  8. Elisa

    How long did it take Edison to make the lightbulb work?

    Reply
  9. Eli

    I can’t wait to go to college.

    Reply
  10. Isabella

    I love how fishing inspired Edison it is so cool maybe that will happen to me to but in a different way!

    Reply
  11. Amanda

    Never knew he liked fishing, very interesting.

    Reply
  12. Elijah

    This made me realize that I need to get out and fish more!

    Reply
  13. Lane

    It is incredible how some people can find solutions to problems in the most unlikely places.

    Reply
  14. Tino

    I never knew fishing inspired Edison.

    Reply
  15. Derek

    I never thought fishing inspired Edison

    Reply
  16. Aksel

    Very interesting! i never knew he fished

    Reply
  17. Madelina

    i had know clue that fishing inspired Edison

    Reply
  18. Archer

    WOW! I didn’t know fishing inspired Edison.

    Reply
  19. Sophia

    Edison was brilliant.

    Reply
  20. Elliana

    It is crazy to think that Edison tried 6,000 different ways to build the bulb. I get frustrated when something doesn’t go right the first half a dozen times. I did know that he wasn’t the first to create electricity, but I did not know that he was the first to create the bulb. I wonder if everyone else was just doing variations of the same method and then Edison thought outside the box.

    Reply
  21. Kevin

    How does the light bulb work?

    My great grandfather used to fish and had a boat of his own.

    Reply
  22. Yoab

    Can Acellus make mobile phones for all students?

    Reply
  23. Eliza

    anything can make an idea

    Reply
  24. Amilicia

    I love fishing but I rarely catch any.

    Thank you!

    Reply
  25. Zoe

    It was nice hearing Roger Billing talk about fishing. My Mom and Stepdad love to fly fish.

    Reply
  26. Jonathan

    anything can make an idea

    Reply
  27. Jade

    So interesting to see how the world has evolved!

    Reply
  28. Mina

    What!!! This episode was so cool!

    Reply
  29. Susanna

    Thomas Edison, the founder of technology

    Reply
  30. Jacob

    I still use one of those fishing light bulbs

    Reply
  31. Autumn

    The fishing story was interesting!

    Reply
  32. Jemeelah

    Wow!

    Reply
  33. Taylor

    Thomas Edison is so cool!

    Reply
  34. Leah

    awesome AND interesting!

    Reply
  35. Liam

    Very interesting subject I enjoyed learning about

    Reply
  36. Abdurahman

    i love the inventions intro and the pendelum thing

    Reply
  37. Claire

    its crazy how little did he know attending a fishing trip can trigger the idea of a light bulb loll

    Reply
  38. Joshua

    loved this episode

    Reply
  39. Kiernan

    why did it take so much longer to create the flashlight even though its basically just a lightbulb in a tube?

    Reply
  40. Amanda

    Never give up!

    Reply
  41. Landon

    Zoning out and letting your mind wander can lead to some great things.

    Reply
  42. Mary

    Wow, I can’t believe that fishing inspired the world’s greatest creator Thomas Edison!

    Reply
  43. Elliana

    I can’t believe Edison never gave up! and it’s so cool that fishing is what inspired him to create the lightbulb

    Reply
  44. Charlotte

    Wow, what an amazing story of how Edison created the lightbulb!! I had no idea that fishing played a role in the invention..

    Reply
  45. Keith

    i go fishing all the time

    Reply
  46. Deanna

    This is so interesting to learn!

    Reply
  47. Jayden

    Sometimes you can think a lot while doing something completely different.

    Reply
  48. Kaylie

    I had no idea that fishing inspired Edison and had a role to play in him creating the lightbulb. Thats so cool to me. And even though he created the lightbulb, there were people who made electric lights before his but not as well as him. This proves that science can always be adapted and improved. Awesome

    Reply
  49. Jameson

    how was the lightbulb thought of?

    Reply
  50. Trevor

    WOW bamboo is important. 😃 😊 😀 😄 😁 😆 😃

    Reply
  51. Kediell

    This was amazing Thomas Edison is the best! No matter what he never gave up.

    Reply
  52. Campbell

    How long did the first lightbulb last?

    Reply
  53. Andrew

    Sometimes fishing can solve your problems.

    Reply
  54. Andrew

    I love the fact that Thomas Edison never gave up!

    Reply
  55. Uzair

    Edison just shows that making mistakes is key towards success

    Reply
  56. Christopher

    Love Edison !

    Reply
  57. Arik

    I’m so thankful for electricity and the light bulb!

    Reply
  58. Hannah

    Last year I went to New York and went to the catacombs they have at St. Patrick’s Basilica and one of them has working Edison light bulbs that belongs to Thomas T. Eckert he had been gifted them from Edison himself which I think is pretty cool.

    Reply
  59. Nguyễn

    Very fascinating when knowing inventors like Edison failed many times when making the lightbulb

    Reply
  60. Harrison

    Yay Edison! Where would be without these incredible inventions!

    Reply
  61. Karma

    I learned that Thomas Edison didn’t just invented a light bulb he also fished for ideas!

    Reply
  62. Bella

    This is super interesting!

    Reply
  63. Violetta

    WOW, this video was so entertaining, I love fishing.

    Reply
  64. Angie

    I loved this

    Reply
  65. Zandie

    I really learned a lot from this video! Super interesting how fishing inspired Edison.

    Reply
  66. Niki

    Had no Idea at all that fishing and Thomas Edison were related !

    Reply
  67. Taymiyyah

    wow fishing seems so fun!

    Reply
  68. Sophie

    This story was funny and entertaining.

    Reply
  69. Mira

    I think the Newton’s Cradle is really cool and it’s interesting watching the transfer of energy through the balls. I am going to ask for one!

    Reply
  70. Rumaysa

    I loved this

    Reply
  71. Caleb

    Its so interesting to see how the original lightbulbs work.

    Reply
  72. Mackenzie

    I love the story

    Reply
  73. Alex

    This is awesome! Even though it took him so many tries to make the light bulb, he persevered and accomplished his goal. It’s very inspiring.

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Sophia Cancel reply

By clicking "Submit", you agree to our Terms & Conditions. Required fields are marked *

Recent Episodes