The Edison Effect
December 17, 2025 • EPISODE 291
What if Thomas Edison’s greatest discovery wasn’t the light bulb? In this episode of Science LIVE, Dr. Roger Billings explores the Edison Effect and how Edison’s experiments paved the way for electron tubes and modern electronics. Discover why this overlooked breakthrough mattered then—and why it still shapes technology today.
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 »
I love r-51!!!
THIS WAS SO FUNNY
thank you for hosting another wonderful video
Hi from Alabama
Marry Chistmas! Great live, enjoyed watching.
I agree, I think the iPhone revolutionized America (and smartphones as a whole)
I really liked learning about Thomas Edison!
As a soon to be graduate, I wish you guys could set up technical careers on IST that we could take online while we make up our minds on what we will study in college. Als that the careers on IST could be expanded.
Hey, I’m graduating soon as well. I think that having online college courses would be a huge, but useful step for Acellus graduates. I know of a few colleges that offer online courses but I think that the Acellus classes are very eye-opening and are a great way to learn new things. I’m with you Francesca!🤗 If you agree with us comment in this post to!!
A senior,
Shelley
Happy Christmas y’all, and a merry new year 😉
I’ll have you know that the Edison effect fascinates me in ways you can’t even imagine.
love it Roger billings.
I am thankful for electricity and to those people and mentors who made it happen😊
Happy holidays!
Hello! I love the new sign language course. I want to try it!
I actually want to see more of the asl classes
The Iphones creation is amazing! Thanks!
Merry Xmas to all Acellus instructors and to Dr. B and Ms. Pajai!!!!!!
Happy Holidays!
Science life was as exciting as always! I look forward to seeing for future lives.
Hello from Virginia, Merry Christmas everyone ,
I love learning new things on science live!
Merry Christmas Acellus friends and teachers! Thank you for this great video.
Very interesting to watch definitely! Happy holidays to you all!
I live in Japan and in my life this is my favorite science live.
I am thankful to have electricity and also to those people and mentors who made it happen 😊
Hi from Japan. I did not know that was where touchscreen originated from. Happy holidays.
Hi from Mississippi! I love how I learn things from these videos and how fun and humorous they are at the same time.
Learning more about Thomas Edison was very interesting.
I really appreciate how engaging and informative your science live is!
I love that the Iphone and the road it took to become a success
I love science live.
I loved this episode of electronics and how they are made and electricity in general. See you next year.
I think the ASL courses sound really cool. I really enjoyed the first half of Science Lives for my first year with Acellus.
nice live, keep up the good work.
Loved the live. happy holidays!
Dr. Billings, could we have an Astronomy class please?
love science live
I’m so exited for the new sign language course
hi hope everyone has a merry Christmas and a happy new years.
Eddison was such a profound inventor, one of a kind! His inventions revolutionized things for his time.
Loving the Science Live today!!
I’m happy Edison invented lightbulbs!
Always appreciate the Area 51 segments!
Happy Holidays to everyone!!
I love these lives this one was one of the best
Hello from texas
I saving credits for a tee shirt!
Same!!!! I want the R-51 did it shirt.
Great Science Live!
Merry Christmas Everyone
this science live was really interesting! i hope everyone at acellus has a happy holiday!
💡 love learning about Thomas Edison
Happy Holidays! 🎄
Best science live!
Science live shows a lot of cool stuff.
love this
The iphone idea was really interesting!
This was amazing!
I love watching these!
Happy Early Christmas Acellus Community!
Happy Holidays!!
I didn’t know that the iphone was the one that first had the touch screen.
I already knew of the Apple typing AI because of the Autocorrect, but I thought it was only used for the Autocorrect. Now I know it’s also used for ease of typing! It’s definitely a strange system, but if it works, it works! I do wonder what the other keyboard prototypes looked like. I’d guess that they’d look a bit silly. Thank you!
I love watching science live!
Happy Holidays!!
Hello teachers, how long would it take to photo the whole the whole Milky way with the new telescope? Merry Christmas everyone!!!!!!
Hi from Texas
AWESOME!!! i loved today’s science live!!!
Science live is so fun!
Science is awsome!
Hi from Tennessee!
Loved learning about the story on how the iphone was created, learned some interesting new facts today!
Really enjoyed learning about how the iPhone was created! Game changer in technology! Science Live ROCKS!
Great video. Have an Merry Christmas
Thanks for the live today!
hope everyone has a great christmas
Thank you. It was a wonderful episode.
It would be sooo cool to learn ASL!!
Merry Christmas teachers, and have a great New Year!
Never would have guessed that the biggest challenge of fully touch screen phones was the keyboard.
I hope that it launches in 2026. I know there has to be more planets like ours.
loved tonight live!!! cant wait for next week
Watching from Mississippi 🙂
I love science live!
Thanks for the live, happy holidays!
I went to the Edison home and Museum in Ft Myers, Fl where many of the experiments could still be seen in his workshop. There were original light bulbs.
Thank you for the video from Wyoming
I love these videos Tobias is the best
I love my ASL class. I hope I can do the next one. I really liked learning about the cell phone invention and how it advanced.
OH MY GOODNESS. I love ASL it is amazing and im so excited that they have this on Acellus.
It really cool how Billings is in some way being taught by Edison. so cool. See yall next year i guess.
Thank you Thomas Edison for your invention
Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!! 🎄🎅
happy holidays👍
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year for you all!
i love that there’s a new ASL class
absolutely amazing fantastic stuff!
I enjoy watching these!
This was a very interesting episode! Happy Holidays!
Merry Christmas and happy new year!
Interesting to learn how the iPhone came to be created and how it changed the way we communicate.
Thank you for the science live! and Merry Christmas!!
Merry Christmas and happy new year
Science is my favorite subject!
I really enjoyed today science live. I’m excited for the next ASL class. I really enjoy ASL right now. I also like learning more about Edison today.
Merry Christmas everyone! Another great Science LIVE. These are my favorite!
Happy Holidays!!
Science is great!
I LOVE SCIENCE so much
i loved this science live. hope everyone has a great holiday!
I love it ❤️😍🥰😍💯💯💞💗♥️💖💝
That was so cool!!!!!!!!!( Merry christmas )
Another wonderful episode to tune into!
Love the video! Hello from Nc
Thank you for sharing a lots of interesting things to help us accumulate knowledge for the future.
I love watching these!!
Highlight of my week!
I’m super excited for the holidays marry Christmas and this was super cool
my mom and dad had nokia phones. Loved the info on Mr. Edison.
Hey from Peru
This was such an informative episode! I really enjoyed it!
So interesting! Merry Christmas to all!
I love Acellus! Merry Christmas!
So interesting to learn about Edison today. Didn’t know that much about him! Love from TN!
Is that where the saying of opposites attract come from??
Great episode like usual. Happy holidays everyone!
Hello from California.
Thanks for a great Science Live. I am eager to learn more about the Edison Effect. Happy Holidays.
Hi from Arkansas!!!
Thank you for the great show tonight
Roger billing (you) are so smart
Hi from VietNam
I love science live
I like Dr. John
Thank you to Ms. Donnie for making ASL 2!!! I have already done ASL 1 and hope to be able to take this new course.
Merry Christmas Acellus friends.
10/10 as always
This was a great science live. I always love to learn more about what Edison did with lightbulb it is just so fascinating to me.
Thank you for the lesson, Dr B!
New to Acellus, these videos are cool
Hello from Mississippi! Loved this epidsode : )
NASA just finished making a telescope and it is like another one that they made, but different! It has a lot of different techniques. It can block off the light of the stars so they can see the exoplanets behind the star. Now we can see behind the stars, farther into space. I am also very excited about the ASL class.
Can’t wait to get Science Live credits! Merry Christmas!!
I love r 51!!
Merry Christmas and a happy New Year from California!!!!!
Hello from Illinois!
I love learning about Thomas Edison
Science Live is amazing.
acellus rocks
really loved this episode!
My dad uses DC from solar panels to his generator that releases energy as AC
Thomas Edison creating the better version of the light bulb was a very good idea
Watching tonight from Kentucky!
Can’t wait for the next live.
My daddy said AC and DC are important for solar generators
Looking forward to achieving the Science Live credit! Merry Christmas everyone!
im so grateful for this program! happy holidays!
How many thing did Thomas Edison invent ?
Happy Holidays to everyone.
tech spotlight is the absolute best yall.
Dr. Joshua talked about the sign language course. That sounds really exciting!
I think its really cool how many electrons are just moving so fast throughout the lightbulb
Todays episode we were able to learn on how phones were made and how much they have evolved.
Did you know the entire floor where the iPhone was being developed was so secret that it was locked down and referred to as the “Purple Dorm.”
i think it truly would be amazing to look through the eye of a teloscope and see the amazing wonders God has created
Thank you!! Very educational.
I love watching these lives.
hello from baltimore
hi from South Carolina
merry Christmas!!!! ♥️ and happy holidays!!
Don’t worry R51, I think you are very funny and cool!!!
Wow my mind is blown!
Dr. Tobias topic of iPhone was amazing! I really am surprised of how much of effort was put into making the iPhone work! Thanks Dr. Tobias!
I watched with my brother. We both think ASL is cool and want to learn. I would hate having to have a stylus all the time to make my phone function. Merry Christmas!
Happy holidays everyone! But I am still confused about some of the things that you mentioned, such as how did Steve Jobs even thought it was possible to make a touch screen iphone? And next time can we have a talk in our lecture about the man who mentored Dr Roger Billings to be the man he is today?
Hello from West Virginia!!!!
Merry Christmas and happy new year!
I learn so much every time!
The engineer’s idea with the keyboard is amazing.
Happy Holidays! Have a great holiday season everyone!