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 »
Congratulations Laurelei on your book!
Can’t wait for next year!
PS: I feel bad for R-51 we left him.
Thank you so much DR. Billings! we love y’all and see ya’ll in 2026!!!!! P.S tell R-51 that I said love you too! HAPPY HOLIDAYS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR! <3
Have a Merry Christmas Everyone! Thank you to science live for teaching me new and cool things about inventing and history!
Happppppyyyyyy Holidays!!!!!
R-51 will never fail to make me laugh.
Merry Christmas!
Can R-51 gift cardboard Pajet a Christmas present next week?
Science live is the best!
I can’t wait for NASA to launch 🚀 the new telescope 🔭!! can’t wait!😁
I hope everyone has a good holidays, and I cant wait for 2027 so we can have even better pictures of the stars and space. 😀
Thank you for this Science Live
Watching from Louisiana. How many telescopes does NASA have?
Have a good break, everyone!
AI can help with the treatment of viruses.
I’m so excited for the new ASL course!
I liked the part about the cell phone keyboard problem
Happy Holidays to everyone!
Omg!! I’m loving these videos
Learning sign language takes a lot of work, but the result is definitely worth it !
What went on in Edison’s mind when he wanted to invent something? How did the ideas come into his mind?
I enjoyed watching my first live since joining ACELLUS. It was cool to learn about how the Iphone came to be and also creating that telescope.
I enjoyed this science live it was one of my favorite ones this year we all love R-51
The Edison effect is so cool.
Happy Holidays to everyone!
Watching from pueblo West Colorado
science live always teaches me new things!
I love how they included the new ASL class! Can’t wait!
Thomas Ediason was a genius!
Not R51 getting electrocuted! Glad he is ok!
I’m amazed of how AI has advanced in helping with medical research to find the answers to treatment much quicker. I hope in the future it can help find a replacement to animal testing, like that animals won’t have to suffer and be tested anymore. I’m also looking forward to the sign language course.
I love Science. Thomas Edison made great inventions.
Happy Holidays to everyone!!!!
See y’all next year! It’s been a good one!
Wow I didn’t know Thomas edison didn’t make the light bulb!
I’d like to learn more about the space telescope!
I love that they made ASL2! Happy Holidays everyone!
Happy holidays! It’s weird to think about a tablet being shrunken down to a phone as being the Apple team’s big secret, seems so normal now!
It’s really cool that people have found ways to possibly see things that are on the other side of our universe.
How old was Thomas Edison when he made his first invention? Also happy holidays everyone!
Happy Holidays!! I love science live, hope you guys enjoyed as well!
Awesome Sauce! lol. Love these
What made Roger Billings want to make a online school?
A new telescope? That sounds pretty cool.
Hey y’all. I’m Christian and I am looking forward to learning with science live today
I watch Science Live with my dad. He loves when Dr. Billings talks about the history of invention.
I never knew the first light bulbs only lasted a few days. How long before they lasted a month?
Dr. Billings is great story teller. I understand now why vacuum tubes were so important.
Happy Holidays! I thought the part on the phone was interesting.
R-51 is so funny.
Thank you Dr. Roger! I love watching these and gaining new information every week!
I like learning about Milky Way
Excited for ASL!
this is better then a doctumentary
Did he get caught when he was using like three different iPhones for different parts of the demo?
I wasn’t aware Edison was also a mentor, that’s really interesting
Congratulations on the new American Sign Language course. It’s going to impact a lot of people.
I truly enjoy the Science Live learnings. I’m always learning something new.
I loved how Dr. Roger Billings talks about apex inventors. I believe that in both inventing and in business, someone who takes something that already exists and develops it into something better and more efficient is really important.
I love science live! Credit to Dr.Roger Billings for being such an amazing host!
very inspiring!
I look forward to the science lives! Thank you so much.
Thank you so much for the live. I can’t wait for the ASL class, I am so excited
Happy holidays everyone!
I’m excited about another class with Mrs. Donnie!
I love looking at the stars. My mom and dad bought me a telescope for Christmas.
The guy that got electrocuted made us laugh. But we know to stay away from electricity.
I feel like the Acellus curriculum hacked my brain to make me want to learn every thing. thank you
It’ It’s amazing how AI could figure out how a virus would attack a cell so quickly, when it would have taken humans a lot longer!
I liked learning about phones, I’m also excited for the ASL new course.
I like Dr. Jhon’s suit
Merry Christmas and Happy holidays to everyone!!! (Including R-51 lol)
Thomas Edison is my favorite
I love r51, he’s so funny
See you in 2026!!!
I always thought Thomas Edison invented the light bulb. and learning about Phones was really interesting, I’m also really excited for a sign language course, I am definitely taking it. Happy Holidays everyone!!
This is one of my favorite lives! R51 was so funny!
R51 is so funny.
Omg! When you said vacuum I was right next to one. Last Science Live of 2025… thank you for a great episode! Happy Holidays see you guys in 2026!!
Science live is so fun!!
I can’t wait to see those space pictures!
Happy hoildays!!!
It’s cool to know that your teacher was taught by Thomas Edison.
Do power lines carry electricity better under or above ground?
I think it’s cool how much Thomas Edison did with inventions.
Can’t wait for next time! happy holidays!
Science live is great.
An ASL class would be great! i think it is a very important supject and skill to have!
We use ASL at home! This is exciting!!!
Thank you Dr. Rogers
Merry Christmas Mr. Billings!
This video is so much fun I’m so interested and inspired
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I hope R51 has a good day.;]
The joke at the beginning was so funny! 😂
This Science Live was amazing. I really enjoyed it today and I hope everyone has a great Christmas.
The Milky Way is beautiful! 🤩
Hello from El Paso, Texas!
I can’t believe the rocket is built but won’t launch until 2027!
I would like to know more about the new NASA telescope!😃
I’m super excited for the new asl class I’ve been trying to learn it for a little bit!
R -51 is awesome.
We love your science lives!! See you in Januray and happy holidays!
Comment I love watching these science lives every week thank you so much!
Does the iphone as we know it today still use pressure orientated keyboards?
Happy holidays! Science live is the best!
I’ve always wanted to use a telescope!
It was pretty cool to learn about how our phone keyboards work.
its impressive how positive and negative work with each other
Science live is so inspiring
Awesome that sign language will be an option. Makes you wonder how people come up with or have ideas like those of Thomas Edison. Great minds have great ideas.
This is the best science live! Happy holidays!
Its amazing how much we can branch off of one idea, even all these years later.
Happy holidays can’t wait for January 7!!!
Science live is the best!
Thank you so much 😊
DrB is always so fun to watch! Happy Holidays!
I would like to know more about the new NASA telescope! 😃
Thanks for another great episode of Science Live! Merry Christmas, Acellus!
Thomas Edison would have been cool to meet.
Technology has come so far especially with phones!
R-51 is so funny
Science live rocks!
It was interesting to learn about the new ASL class also about Thomas Eddison’s inventions!
Thomas Edison is such a legend and so inspirational to so many people and life without the things he invented would not have been fun
Dr. Billings, thank you for your episode about Thomas Edison and the Edison effect. Guess what? I could be inventing the first fan book, when I’m older, for the New York Times Best Selling Book Series WARRIORS,. You inspire me every day as you inspire others. Thank you so much for doing Science Live. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
This weeks science live was very interesting, happy holidays!
I have multiple friends who are deaf and I would love to learn ASL to communicate more with them!
Very awesome! Very excited to see what’s upcoming for the next science live!
Is it possible that we could get a satellite that could go past the milky way?
Thomas Edison was a genius imagine living without light?
It’s crazy how far the Iphone has evolved over the past twenty+ years. I seriously didn’t realize how tiny the first Iphone was until I watched this Science Live.
Dr. Billings, would you be the apex inventor of the Hydrogen car then??
Science live is fire!
how did doctor billings make Acellus?
I’m excited for the launch of the new space telescope!
I love science lives!
Love learning more about Edison!
I had no idea how complex touchscreen was.
we need to find another affect and name it the 51 affect
R-51 always finds a way to make me laugh! Merry Christmas everybody!
I love science live and it is the highlight of my week
I love how there is going to be a new course for sign language!
I’m excited for more sign language! Happy Holidays!
Dr. Roger Billings is so cool!!!!🤩😎
I can’t wait to see pictures from the new telescope!
Thank you for teaching us about the Edison effect.
Happy Holidays from Canyon Lake, Tx
Science live is so fun!!
When will the conspiracy theory class come out
So interesting! I love watching these!
That’s great that there’s a new ASL class.
Hello, my name is Jacob. I especially liked the part about Thomas Edison inventing the vacuum tube. I also am looking forward to seeing the sign language course. Anyway, thank you for the knowledge.
Thomas Edison is so cool. I would love to visit his house
I liked the video it was very detailed and had a decent amount of information R-51 was funny.
I love these science lives and happy holidays
Love Science Live!!!
I found this weeks science live to be very entertaining.
I am so glad that there is going to be a second ASL class!
I love science live and I’m still sad that we have a break but happy holidays everybody!!
Merry Christmas or Happy Hanukkah!! I hope you guys holidays are amazing!! Also… HAPPY NEW YEAR🥳🥳🥳👏👏🎊🎊🎊🎊🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎈🎈🎈🥂🥂🥂
Always like watching R-51
R-51 is always the best!
Science Live makes me learn so much more!
Merry Christmas! Good science live as usual 😃
I love science live !!!!!
R-51 is so hysterical
Would it be possible to measure the energy contained in the sun or the total energy produced in a day?
I think it’s cool how much Edison was a part of other inventions!
Happy holidays to everyone!!!👍
Thank you for making these videos for us!
I love science live!
I love the ASL class! I can’t wait!
Wow! I really appreciated this lecture. Mainly, Tobias’ part where he talked about apple’s journey to develop the keyboard of the cellphone. How amazing is seeing other people thriving when not giving up on the first obstacle. Little steps can be combined to transform the world!
Thank you very much all Acellus Team.
r-51 is so funny!
Learning about Thomas Edison was so cool
Happy Holidays, I’m excited about the new language class.